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THINGS  JAPANESE 


BEING 


NOTES  ON  VAKIOUS   SUBJECTS   CONNECTED  WITH   JAPAN 


FOR  THE  USE  OF  TRAVELLERS  AND  OTHERS 


BY 

BASIL  HALL*CHAMBERLAIN  ' 

EMERITUS   PROFESSOR   OF  JAPANESE   AND   PHILOLOGY    IN   THE   IMPERIAL 
UNIVERSITY   OF  TOKYO 


Fifth  Edition  Revised 


LONDON : 
JOHN  MURRAY,  ALBEMARLE  STREET 

L™?    1  K^LLY  &  WALSH,  LIMITED  |    «SSSS 


1905 
[All  rights  reserved] 


7985S 1 


Les  longs  ouvrages  me  font  peur. 

Loin  d'epuiser  wie  matter e, 

On  11  en  doit  prendre  que  la  fleur 


(La  Fontaine.) 


PREFACE. 


In  the  unlikely  event  of  any  one  instituting  a  minute 
comparison  between  this  edition  and  its  predecessor,  he 
would  find  minor  alterations  innumerable, — here  a  line 
erased,  there  a  paragraph  added,  or  again  a  figure 
changed,  a  statement  qualified,  a  description  or  a  list 
brought  up  to  date.  But  take  it  altogether,  the  book 
remains  the  same  as  heretofore.  It  would  seem  to  have 
found  favour  in  many  quarters,  to  judge  from  the  man- 
ner in  which,  years  after  its  first  appearance,  newspapers 
and  book-makers  continue  to  quote  wholesale  from  it 
without  acknowledgment;  and  the  title,  which  cost  us 
much  cogitation,  and  which  we  borrowed  ultimately 
from  the  Spanish  phrase  cosas  de  Espana,  has  passed 
into  general  use,  even  coming  to  supply  titles  for 
similar  works  written  about  other  lands  in  imitation 
of  this  one 

The  article  on  Archceology  contributed  by  Mr.  W.  G. 
Aston,  C.  M.  G.,  to  the  second  edition,  and  that  on 
Geology  by  Prof.  John  Milne,  F.R.S.,  remain  untouched. 
Best   thanks,    once  more,  to  these  kind  friends,  as    also 


vr 

to  Mr.  James  Murdoch,  Mr.  H.  V.  Henson,  Rev.  Dr.  D.  C 
Greene,  and  Abbe  J.  N.  Guerin,  who  have  supplied  in- 
formation on  points  beyond  the  scope  of  our  own  know- 
ledge. To  Mr.  W.  B.  Mason  and  to  Mr.  W.  D.  Cox 
we  are  under  special  obligations, — to  the  former  for 
constant  advice  and  assistance  during  the  progress  of 
the  work,  to  the  latter  for  revision  of  the  proofs,  a  task 
of  a  different  order  of  difficulty  in  this  country  from  what 
it  is  at  home  with  printers  whose  native  language  is 
English.  The  greater  part  of  the  index  has  been  com- 
piled by  Mr.  P2.  B.  Clarke,  of  the  First  Higher  School, 
Tokyo. 

Miyanoshita, 

November,  1904. 


NOTE  ON  THE  PRONUNCIATION  OF 
JAPANESE  WORDS. 

Sound  the  vowels  and  diphthongs  as  in  Italian,  that  is  (approximately), 
a     as  in     "father."  u     as  in     "  bush." 

e      „    „      "men."  ai    „   the   "y"  of  " my." 

i      „    „     "police"  ei    „    the   "ay"  of  "may." 

O      „    „      "/or."  au  ,,   the   "  ow"  s/'Vow." 

Distinguish  lo7ig  vowels  from  short,  as  in  Latin ;  thus  tori,  "  bird"  but 
tori,  "street;"  zutsu,  "[one,  etc.]  at  a  time,"  but  zutsu,  "headache? 

Sound  the  consonants  as  in  English,  noting  only  that  g*  never  has  the 
"j"  sound.  At  the  beginning  of  a  word  it  is  pronounced  as  in  "give/' 
in  tJte  middle  it  has  the  sound  of  English  ng\  Note,  too,  that  z  before 
"  u "  is  pronounced  as  dz,  thus  Kozu  (ko-dzu). 

Consonants  written  double  are  distinctly  pronounced  double,  as  in  Italian. 
Thus  arama,  "  a  shampooer?  sounds  quite  different  from  ama,  "  a  nun? 
{Compare  such  English  words  as  "  owewess,"  "  sho^-/o\ver.") 

There  is  little  if  any  tonic  decent,  all  syllables,  except  such  as  have 
long  quantity,  being  pronounced  evenly  and  lightly,  as  in  French.  lor 
instance,  the  word  ama  given  above  sounds  almost  exactly  like  the  French 
word  "amas,"  and  would  not  be  understood  if  pronounced  like  English 
"  armour." 


INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER. 


To  have  lived  through  the  transition  stage  of  modern  Japan 
makes  a  man  feel  preternaturally  old ;  for  here  he  is  in  modern 
times,  with  the  air  full  of  talk  about  bicycles  and  bacilli  and 
"spheres  of  influence/'  and  yet  he  can  himself  distinctly 
remember  the  Middle  Ages.  The  dear  old  Samurai  who  first 
initiated  the  present  writer  into  the  mysteries  of  the  Japanese 
language,  wore  a  queue  and  two  swords.  This  relic  of  feudalism 
now  sleeps  in  Nirvana.  His  modern  successor,  fairly  fluent  in 
English,  and  dressed  in  a  serviceable  suit  of  dittos,  might  almost 
be  a  European,  save  for  a  certain  obliqueness  of  the  eyes  and 
scantiness  of  beard.  Old  things  pass  away  between  a  night  and 
a  morning.  The  Japanese  boast  that  they  have  done  in  thirty 
or  forty  years  what  it  took  Europe  half  as  many  centuries  to 
accomplish.  Some  even  go  further,  and  twit  us  Westerns  with 
falling  behind  in  the  race.  It  is  waste  of  time  to  go  to  Germany 
to  study  philosophy,  said  a  Japanese  savant  recently  returned 
from  Berlin  : — the  lectures  there  are  elementary,  the  subject  is 
better  taught  at  T5kyo. 


2  INTRODUCTORY    CHAPTER. 

Thus  does  it  come  about  that,  having  arrived  in  Japan  in 
1873,  we  ourselves  feel  well-nigh  four  hundred  years  old,  and 
assume  without  more  ado  the  two  well-known  privileges  of  olp 
age, — garrulity  and  an  authoritative  air.  We  are  perpetually 
being  asked  questions  about  Japan.  Here  then  are  the  answers, 
put  into  the  shape  of  a  dictionary,  not  of  words  but  of  things, — 
or  shall  we  rather  say  a  guide-book,  less  to  places  than  to 
subjects  ? — not  an  encyclopaedia,  mind  you,  not  the  vain  attempt 
by  one  man  to  treat  exhaustively  of  all  things,  but  only  sketches 
of  many  things.  The  old  and  the  new  will  be  found  cheek 
by  jowl.  What  will  not  be  found  is  padding  :  for  padding  is 
unpardonable  in  any  book  on  Japan,  where  the  material  is  so 
plentiful  that  the  chief  difficulty  is  to  know  what  to  omit. 

In  order  to  enable  the  reader  to  supply  deficiencies  and  to 
form  his  own  opinions,  if  haply  he  should  be  of  so  unusual  a 
turn  of  mind  as  to  desire  so  to  do,  we  have,  at  the  end  of 
almost  every  article,  indicated  the  names  of  trustworthy  works 
bearing  on  the  subject  treated  in  that  article.  For  the  rest,  this 
book  explains  itself.  Any  reader  who  detects  errors  or  omissions 
in  it  will  render  the  author  an  invaluable  service  by  writing  to  him 
to  point  them  out.  As  a  little  encouragement  in  this  direction, 
we  will  ourselves  lead  the  way  by  presuming  to  give  each  reader, 
especially  each  globe-trotting  reader,  a  small  piece  of  advice.  We 
take  it  for  granted,  of  course,  that  there  are  no  Japanese  listening, 
and  the  advice  is  this  : — Whatever  you  do,  don't  expatiate,  in  the 
presence  of  Japanese  of  the  new  school,  on  those  old,  quaint, 
and  beautiful  things  Japanese  which  rouse  your  most  genuine 
admiration.  Antiquated  persons  do  doubtless  exist  here  and  there 
to  whom   Buddhist  piety   is   precious ;   others   may  still    secretly 


INTRODUCTORY    CHAPTER.  3 

cherish  the  swords  bequeathed  to  them  by  their  knightly 
forefathers ;  quite  a  little  coterie  has  taken  up  with  art ;  and 
there  are  those  who  practise  the  tea  ceremonies,  arrange  flowers 
according  to  the  traditional  esthetic  rules,  and  even  perform  the 
mediaeval  lyric  dramas.  But  all  this  is  merely  a  backwater. 
Speaking  generally,  the  educated  Japanese  have  done  with  their 
past.  They  want  to  be  somebody  else  and  something  else  than 
what  they  have  been  and  still  partly  are. 

When  Sir  Edwin  Arnold  came  to  Tokyo,  he  was  entertained  at  a 
banquet  by  a  distinguished  company  including  officials,  journalists, 
and  professors,  in  fact,  representative  modern  Japanese  of  the  best 
class.  In  returning  thanks  for  this  hospitality,  Sir  Edwin  made  a 
speech  in  which  he  lauded  Japan  to  the  skies — and  lauded  it  justly 
— as  the  nearest  earthly  approach  to  Paradise  or  to  Lotus-land, — 
so  fairy-like,  said  he,  is  its  scenery,  so  exquisite  its  art,  so  much 
more  lovely  still  that  almost  divine  sweetness  of  disposition,  that 
charm  of  demeanour,  that  politeness  humble  without  servility 
and  elaborate  without  affectation,  which  place  Japan  high  above 
all  other  countries  in  nearly  all  those  things  that  make  life  worth 
living.  (We  do  not  give  his  exact  words,  but  we  give  the  general 
drift.) — Now,  do  you  think  that  the  Japanese  were  satisfied  with 
this  meed  of  praise  ?  Not  a  bit  of  it.  Out  comes  an  article  next 
morning  in  the  chief  paper  which  had  been  represented  at  the 
banquet, — an  article  acknowledging,  indeed,  the  truth  of  Sir 
Edwin's  description,  but  pointing  out  that  it  conveyed,  not  praise, 
but  pitiless  condemnation.  Art  forsooth,  scenery,  sweetness  of 
disposition !  cries  this  editor.  Why  did  not  Sir  Edwin  praise  us 
for  huge  industrial  enterprises,  for  commercial  talent,  for  wealth, 
political  sagacity,  powerful  armaments  ?     Of  course  it  is  because 


4  INTRODUCTORY    CHAPTER. 

he  could  not  honestly  do  so.     He  has  gauged  us  at  our  true  value, 
and  tells  us  in  effect  that  we  are  only  pretty  weaklings. 

Since  Sir  Edwin  Arnold's  time,  doubtless,  more  than  one 
war  has  been  fought  and  won,  and  has  proved  to  an  as- 
tonished world  and  to  the  Japanese  themselves  that  they  are  no 
weaklings,  but  extremely  plucky,  practical  men.  Since  his  time, 
too,  Japan's  sunny  towns  and  even  her  green  valleys  have  been 
darkened  by  the  smoke  of  factory  chimneys,  and  the  flag  of  her 
merchant  marine  has  been  seen  in  every  sea.  Nevertheless,  the 
feeling  above  alluded  to  persists,  and  to  us  it  appears  perfectly 
natural  under  the  circumstances.  For,  after  all,  Japan  must 
continue  ever  more  and  more  to  modernise  herself  if  the  basis  of 
her  new  departure  is  to  remain  solid,  if  her  swiftly  growing  ambi- 
tion is  to  be  gratified,  and  if  her  minister  of  finance  is  to  be  able  to 
make  both  ends  meet.  Besides  which,  our  European  world  of 
thought,  of  enterprise,  of  colossal  scientific  achievement,  has  been 
as  much  a  wonder-world  to  the  Japanese  as  Old  Japan  could  ever 
be  to  us.  There  is  this  difference,  however.  Old  Japan  was  to  us 
a  delicate  little  wonder-world  of  sylphs  and  fairies.  Europe  and 
America,  with  their  railways,  their  telegraphs,  their  gigantic  com- 
merce, their  gigantic  armies  and  navies,  their  endless  applied  arts 
founded  on  chemistry  and  mathematics,  were  to  the  Japanese  a 
wonder-world  of  irresistible  genii  and  magicians.  The  Japanese 
have,  it  is  true,  evinced  less  appreciation  of  our  literature.  They 
esteem  us  whimsical  for  attaching  so  much  importance  as  we  do 
to  poetry,  to  music,  to  religion,  to  speculative  disquisitions.  Our 
material  greatness  has  completely  dazzled  them,  as  well  it  might. 
They  know  also  well  enough — for  every  Eastern  nation  knows  it — 
that  our  Christian  and  humanitarian  professions  are  really  nothing 


INTRODUCTORY    CHAPTER.  5 

but  bunkum.*  The  history  of  India,  of  Egypt,  of  Turkey,  is  no 
secret  to  them.  More  familiar  still,  because  fought  out  at  their  very 
gates,  is  the  great  and  instructive  case  of  the  West  versus  China, — 
six  or  seven  young  tigers  against  one  old  cow.  The  Japanese 
would  be  blind  indeed,  did  they  not  see  that  their  best  security 
for  continued  safety  and  success  lies  in  the  determination  to  be 
strong,  and  in  the  endeavour  not  to  be  too  different  from  the  rest 
of  mankind ;  for  the  mob  of  Western  nations  will  tolerate  ec- 
centricity of  appearance  no  more  than  will  a  mob  of  roughs. 

Indeed,  scarcely  any  even  among  those  who  implore  the 
Japanese  to  remain  as  they  are,  refrain,  as  a  matter  of  fact, 
from  urging  them  to  make  all  sorts  of  changes.  "Japanese 
dress  for  ladies  is  simply  perfection,"  we  hear  one  of  these 
persons  cry;  "only  don't  you  think  that  gloves  might  be  added 
with  advantage?  And  then,  too,  ought  not  something  to  be 
done  with  the  skirt  to  prevent  it  from  opening  in  front,  just  for 
the  sake  of  decency,  you  know  ?  " — Says  another,  whose  special 
vanity  is  Japanese  music  (there  is  considerable  distinction  about 
this  taste,  for  it  is  a  rare  one) — says  he — "  Now  please  keep 
your  music  from  perishing.  Keep  it  just  as  it  is,  so  curious  to 
the  archaeologist,   so  beautiful,   for  all  that  the  jeerers  may   say. 


*  It  has  pained  the  writer  to  find  this  sentence  misinterpreted  by  some  otherwise 
friendly  critics  of  an  earlier  edition  (the  Spectator,  for  instance)  into  so  shallow  and 
arrogant  an  assertion  as  that  "Christianity  and  humanitarianism  are  nothing  but  bun- 
kum." (!)  What  is  meant  is  simply  what  is  said  in  the  text,  namely,  that  our  professions 
are  bunkum.  No  doubt,  individuals  may  occasionally  be  found  whose  practice  carries 
out  their  profession.  But  can  any  impartial  student  of  history  deny  that,  as  nations,  the 
Christian  nations  (so-called)  flout  their  professions  with  their  deeds?  Sometimes  their 
hypocrisy  is  piquantly  transparent,  as  when,  to  take  a  very  modern  instance,  we  find 
figuring  prominently  in  the  list  of  reasons  officially  alleged  for  the  American  annexation 
of  Hawaii  "  the  intimate  part  taken  by  citizens  of  the  United  States  in  there  implanting 
the  seeds  of  Christian  civilisation."  Could  the  most  moral  wolf  desire  any  whiter  wool 
for  his  sheep's  clothing? 


0  INTRODUCTORY    CHAPTER. 

There  is  only  one  small  thing  which  I  would  advise  you  to  do, 
and  that  is  to  harmonise  it.  Of  course  that  would  change  its 
character  a  little.  But  no  one  would  notice  it,  and  the  general 
effect  would  be  improved." — Yet  another,  an  enthusiast  for  faience, 
wishes  Japanese  decorative  methods  to  be  retained,  but  to  be 
applied  to  French  forms,  because  no  cup  or  plate  made  in  Japan 
is  so  perfectly  round  as  are  the  products  of  French  kilns.  A 
fourth  delights  in  Japanese  brocade,  but  suggests  new  breadths,  in 
order  to  suit  making  up  into  European  dresses.  A  fifth  wants  to 
keep  Japanese  painting  exactly  as  it  is,  but  with  the  trivial  addition 
of  perspective.  A  sixth — but  a  truce  to  the  quoting  of  these 
self-confuting  absurdities.  Put  into  plain  English,  they  mean, 
"  Do  so-and-so,  only  don't  do  it.  Walk  north,  and  at  the  same 
time  take  care  to  proceed  in  a  southerly  direction." 

Meanwhile  the  Japanese  go  their  own  way.  Who  could  expect 
that  either  their  social  conditions  or  their  arts  should  remain 
unaltered  when  all  the  causes  which  produced  the  Old  Japan  of 
our  dreams  have  vanished  ?  Feudalism  has  gone,  isolation  has 
gone,  beliefs  have  been  shattered,  new  idols  have  been  set  up,  new 
and  pressing  needs  have  arisen.  In  the  place  of  chivalry  there  is 
industrialism,  in  the  place  of  a  small  class  of  aristocratic  native 
connoisseurs  there  is  a  huge  and  hugely  ignorant  foreign  public 
to  satisfy.  All  the  causes  have  changed,  and  yet  it  is  expected 
that  the  effects  will  remain  as  heretofore  ! 

No.  Old  Japan  is  dead,  and  the  only  decent  thing  to  do  with 
the  corpse  is  to  bury  it.  Then  you  can  set  up  a  monument 
over  it,  and,  if  you  like,  come  and  worship  from  time  to  time 
at  the  grave ;  for  that  would  be  quite  "  Japanesey."  This 
unpretentious   book    is   intended   to  be,    as  it   were,    the   epitaph 


INTRODUCTORY    CHAPTER.  j 

recording  the  many  and  extraordinary  virtues  of  the  deceased^ 
— his  virtues,  but  also  his  frailties.  For,  more  careful  of  fact  than 
the  generality  of  epitaphists,  we  have  ventured  to  speak  out  our 
whole  mind  on  almost  every  subject,  and  to  call  things  by  their 
right  names,  being  persuaded  that  true  appreciation  is  always 
critical  as  well  as  kindlv. 


Yes,  we  repeat  it,  Old  Japan  is  dead  and  gone,  and  Young 
Japan  reigns  in  its  stead,  as  opposed  in  appearance  and  in  aims 
to  its  predecessor  as  history  shows  many  a  youthful  prince  to 
have  been  to  the  late  king,  his  father.  The  steam-whistle,  the 
newspaper,  the  voting-paper,  the  pillar-post  at  every  street-corner 
and  even  in  remote  villages,  the  clerk  in  shop  or  bank  or  public 
office  hastily  summoned  from  our  side  to  answer  the  ring  of  the 
telephone  bell,  the  railway  replacing  the  palanquin,  the  iron-clad 
replacing  the  war-junk, — these  and  a  thousand  other  startling- 
changes  testify  that  Japan  is  transported  ten  thousand  miles 
away  from  her  former  moorings.  She  is  transported  out  of  her 
patriarchal  calm  into  the  tumult  of  Western  competition, — a 
competition  active  right  along  the  line,  in  diplomacy  and  war,  in 
industries,  in  shipping,  possibly  even  in  colonisation.  Neverthe- 
less, as  Madcap  Hal,  when  once  seated  on  the  throne,  showed 
plainly,  despite  all  individual  difference,  that  the  blood  of  prudent 
Henry  IV.  ran  in  his  veins,  so  is  it  abundantly  clear  to  those  who 
have  dived  beneath  the  surface  of  the  modern  Japanese  upheaval 
that  more  of  the  past  has  been  retained  than  has  been  let  go. 
It   is  not   merely   that   the    revolution    itself  was    an    extremely 


8  INTRODUCTORY    CHAPTER. 

slow  growth,  a  gradual  movement  taking  a  century  and  a  half  to 
mature.*  It  is  that  the  national  character  persists  intact,  manifest- 
ing no  change  in  essentials.  Circumstances  have  deflected  it  into 
new  channels,  that  is  all.  The  arduous  intellectual  training  of  the 
Japanese  gentry  of  former  days — the  committing  to  memory  of 
the  Confucian  classics — fostered  a  mental  habit  at  once  docile, 
retentive,  apt  for  detail.  With  these  very  same  qualities  their 
sons  sit  to-day  at  the  feet  of  the  science  of  the  West.  The 
devotion  of  the  Samurai  to  his  Daimyo  and  his  clan  was  un- 
surpassed ;  for  them,  at  any  time,  he  would  offer  up  his  life, 
his  all.  This  same  loyal  flame  glows  still  at  a  white  heat ;  only, 
the  horizon  having  been  widened  by  the  removal  of  provincial 
barriers  and  the  fall  of  petty  feudal  thrones,  the  one  Emperor, 
the  united  nation  have  focused  all  its  rays  into  a  single 
burning-point.  The  Japanese  of  former  days,  even  when  political 
combination  for  any  purpose  was  penal,  always  moved  in  families, 
in  clans,  in  wards  of  townsmen,  in  posses  of  peasants,  in  any 
corporate  way  rather  than  as  individuals.  The  boycotts,  the 
combines,  the  sudden  fashions  and  gusts  of  feeling  before  which 
the  whole  nation  bends  like  grass,  manifest  exactly  the  same 
trait  in  a  novel  guise.  To  take  a  more  radical  characteristic,  the 
ingrained  tendency  of  the  national  mind  towards  the  imitation 
of  foreign  models  does  but  repeat  to-day,  and  on  an  equally 
large  scale,  its  exploit  of  twelve  centuries  ago.  At  that  early 
period  it  flung  itself  on  Chinese  civilisation  as  it  has  now  flung 
itself  on  ours  ;  and  in  both  cases  alike  certain  reservations  have 
been  made.  The  old  national  religion,  for  instance,  was  not 
abolished  then,  neither  has  it  been  abolished  now,  though  in  both 

*  See  Article  on  HISTORY. 


INTRODUCTORY    CHAPTER.  9 

cases  full  latitude  has  been  accorded  by  this  nation  of  thorough- 
going latitudinarians  to  the  alien  religious  and  philosophical  ideas. 
Having  absorbed  all  the  manifestly  useful  elements  of  our 
culture,  Young  Japan's  eager  wish  is  to  communicate  them  to  her 
neighbours.  To  act  as  broker  between  West  and  East  is  her 
self-imposed  mission.  We  cannot  help  thinking  that  Japan's 
precept  and  example  will  more  rapidly  leaven  the  Chinese  lump 
with  the  leaven  of  Europeanism  than  Europe  has  been  able  to  do 
in  her  own  person, — and  this  for  the  simple  reason  that  though 
Japan  and  her  continental  neighbours  heartily  despise  each  other, 
as  the  manner  of  neighbours  is,  they  nevertheless  understand  each 
other  in  a  way  in  which  we  can  never  hope  to  understand  any 
of  them.  Europe's  illusions  about  the  Far  East  are  truly  crude. 
Who  would  dream  of  coupling  together  New-Englanders  and 
Patagonians,  simply  because  arbitrary  custom  has  affixed  the  single 
name  of  "America"  to  the  two  widely  separated  regions  which 
these  two  peoples  inhabit  ?  Yet  persons  not  otherwise  undiscern- 
ing  continue  to  class,  not  only  the  Chinese,  but  even  the  Japanese, 
with  Arabs  and  Persians,  on  the  ground  that  all  are  equally 
"Orientals,"  "Asiatics,"  though  they  dwell  thousands  of  miles 
apart  in  space,  and  tens  of  thousands  of  miles  apart  in  culture. 
Such  is  the  power  over  us  of  words  which  we  have  ourselves 
coined.  Then  a  further  step  is  taken  : — on  a  basis  of  mere  words  a 
fantastic  structure  is  raised  of  mere  notions,  among  which  the 
"  Yellow  Peril "  has  had  most  vogue  of  late.  When  a  new  power, 
or  an  old  one  in  new  shape,  arises  on  soil  which  we  have  labelled 
"  Western," — for  instance,  Germany  or  Italy  during  the  lifetime 
of  men  still  living,  the  United  States  or  Russia  at  an  earlier 
date, — no  one  descries  any  special  menace  in  such  an  event ;  it  is 


IO  INTRODUCTORY    CHAPTER. 

recognised  as  one  of  the  familiar  processes  of  history.  But  let 
the  word  "  Asia  "  be  sounded,  and  at  once  a  spectre  is  conjured  up. 
In  fact,  we  find  ourselves  back  in  that  strange  limbo  of  contradic- 
tions already  noticed  ;  for  the  very  same  folks  blow  hot  and  cold, 
raving  about  Japan's  perfections  at  one  moment,  fearing  her 
possible  excesses  at  another. 

It  might  be  interesting  to  push  these  considerations  further. 
But  Japan  herself  is  our  theme,  not  Europe's  fancies  concerning 
her.  We  have  merely  alluded  to  these  last  in  pursuance  of  our 
general  plan,  which  is  to  indicate  lines  of  thought  for  the  reader 
himself  to  follow  out.  He  will  find  leisure  for  such  meditations 
as  he  speeds  along  in  his  jinrikisha,  or  else  at  some  wayside 
resthouse  among  the  blossom-strewn  hills,  while  waiting  for  the 
dainty  handmaiden  to  bring  him  his  thimbleful  of  tea. 


THINGS  JAPANESE. 


Abacus.  Learn  to  count  on  the  abacus — the  soroban,  as  the 
Japanese  call  it — and  you  will  often  be  able  to  save  a  large 
percentage  on  your  purchases.  The  abacus  is  that  instrument, 
composed  of  beads  sliding  on  wires  fixed  in  a  frame,  with  which 
many  of  us  learnt  the  multiplication  table  in  early  childhood.  In 
Japan  it  is  used,  not  only  by  children,  but  by  adults,  who  still 
mostly  prefer  it  to  our  method  of  figuring  with  pen  and  paper. 
As  for  mental  arithmetic,  that  does  not  exist  in  this  archipelago. 
Tell  any  ordinary  Japanese  to  add  5  and  7  :  he  will  flounder 
hopelessly,  unless  his  familiar  friend,  the  abacus,  is  at  hand.  And 
here  we  come  round  again  to  the  practical  advantage  of  being  able 
to  read  off  at  sight  a  number  figured  on  this  instrument.  You 
have  been  bargaining  at  a  curio-shop,  we  will  suppose.  The 
shopman  has  got  perplexed.  He  refers  to  his  list,  and  then 
calculates  on  the  instrument  (which  of  course  he  takes  for  granted 
that  you  do  not  understand)  the  lowest  price  for  which  he  can  let 
you  have  the  article  in  question.  Then  he  raises  his  head,  and, 
with  a  bland  smile,  assures  you  that  the  cost  of  it  to  himself  was  so 
and  so,  naming  a  price  considerably  larger  than  the  real  one.  You 
have  the  better  of  him,  if  you  can  read  his  figuring  of  the  sum. 
If  you  cannot,  ten  to  one  he  has  the  better  of  you. 

The  principle  of  the  abacus  is  this  : — Each  of  the  five  beads  in 
the  broad  lower  division  of  the  board  represents  one  unit,  and  each 
solitary  bead  in  the  narrow  upper  division  represents  five  units. 
Each  vertical  column  is  thus  worth  ten  units.  Furthermore,  each 
vertical  column  represents  units  ten  times  greater  than  those  in  the 


1 2  Abacus. 

column  immediately  to  the  right  of  it,  exactly  as  in  our  own 
system  of  notation  by  means  of  Arabic  numerals.  Any  sum  in 
arithmetic  can  be  done  on  the  abacus,  even  to  the  extracting  of 
square  and  cube  roots  ;  and  Dr.  Knott,  the  chief  English — or,  to  be 
quite  correct,  the  chief  Scotch- — writer  on  the  subject,  is  of  opinion 
that  Japanese  methods  excel  ours  in  rapidity.  Perhaps  he  is  a 
little  enthusiastic.  One  can  scarcely  help  thinking  so  of  an  author 
who  refers  to  a  new  Japanese  method  of  long  division  as  "  almost 
fascinating."  The  Japanese,  it  seems,  have  not  only  a  multipli- 
cation table,  but  a  division  table  besides.  We  confess  that  we  do 
not  understand  the  division  table,  even  with  Dr.  Knott's  expla- 
nations. Indeed  we  will  confess  more  :  we  have  never  learnt  the 
abacus  at  all !  If  we  recommend  others  to  learn  it,  it  is  because  we 
hope  that,  for  their  own  sake,  they  will  do  as  we  tell  them  and  not 
do  as  we  do.  Personally  we  have  found  one  method  of  ciphering 
enough,  and  a  great  deal  more  than  enough,  to  poison  the  happi- 
ness of  one  life- time. 

The  use  of  the  abacus  is  not  the  only  peculiarity  of  this  nation 
in  matters  numerical.  A  more  irritating  one  to  the  accurate 
European  mind  is  their  habit  of  "  inclusive "  reckoning.  An 
example  or  two  will  best  make  this  clear.  You  arrived  in  April, 
say.  It  is  now  June.  According  to  the  Japanese,  you  have  been 
here  three  months  ; — for  the  month  of  your  arrival  and  the  present 
month  are  both  counted  in.  A  child  is  born  in  December,  1901. 
By  January,  1902,  they  currently  talk  of  the  child  as  being  two 
years  old,  because  it  has  lived  through  a  part  of  two  separate  years. 
The  thing  may  be  exaggere/ed  a  degree  further  still,  when,  for- 
getting that  the  Japanese  year  formerly  began  some  time  in  our 
February  (as  the  Chinese  year  still  does),  they  fail  to  make  allow- 
ance for  this  in  the  case  of  births  that  took  place  in  January  or 
early  February,  previous  to  the  reform  of  the  calendar  in  1873. 
In  the  case  of  a  public  man  who  died  early  in  1901,  at  the  (real) 
age  of  65,  we  noticed  that  all  the  obituaries  were  wrong  by  three 
years.  They  credited  him  with  being  68  ;  and  of  the  various  other 
dates  mentioned,  some  were  two  years  out,  some  three,  according 


Abdication.  13 

to  the  month  to  which  they  referred.  The  new-comer  will  there- 
fore do  well  to  treat  Japanese  statements  regarding  dates  and  ages 
with  caution. 

Book  recommended.      The  Abacus,  in  its  Historic  and  Scientific  Aspects,  by  Dr.  C. 
G.  Knott,  F.  R.  S.  E.,  printed  in  Vol.  XIV.  Part  I.  of  the  "  Asiatic  Transactions." 

Abdication.  The  abdication  of  monarchs,  which  is  excep- 
tional in  Europe,  has  for  many  ages  been  the  rule  in  Japan.  It 
came  into  vogue  in  the  seventh  century  together  with  Buddhism, 
whose  doctrines  led  men  to  retire  from  worldly  cares  and  pleasures 
into  solitude  and  contemplation.  But  it  was  made  use  of  by 
unscrupulous  ministers,  who  placed  infant  puppets  on  the  throne, 
and  caused  them  to  abdicate  on  attaining  to  maturity.  Thus  it 
was  a  common  thing  during  the  Middle  Ages  for  three  Mikados  to 
be  alive  at  the  same  time, — a  boy  on  the  throne,  his  father  or 
brother  who  had  abdicated,  and  his  grandfather  or  other  relative 
who  had  abdicated  also.  From  A.D.  987  to  991,  there  were  as 
many  as  four  Mikados  all  alive  together  : — Reizei  Tenno,  who  had 
ascended  the  throne  at  the  age  of  eighteen,  and  who  abdicated  at 
twenty ;  En-yu  Tenno,  emperor  at  eleven  and  abdicated  at  twenty- 
six  ;  Kwazan  Tenno,  emperor  at  seventeen  and  abdicated  at 
nineteen ;  and  Ichij5  Tenno,  who  had  just  ascended  the  throne  as 
a  little  boy  of  seven.  Under  the  Mikado  Go-Nijo  (A.D.  1302-8) 
there  were  actually  five  Mikados  all  alive  together,  namely  Go-Nijo 
Tenno  himself,  made  emperor  at  seventeen,  had  his  four  abdicated 
predecessors  : — Go-Fukakusa  Tenno,  emperor  at  four  and  abdicated 
at  seventeen ;  Kameyama  Tenno,  emperor  at  eleven  and  abdicated 
at  twenty-six ;  Go-Uda  Tenno,  emperor  at  eight  and  abdicated  at 
twenty-one ;  and  Fushimi  Tenno,  emperor  at  twenty-three  and 
abdicated  the  same  year.  Sometimes  it  was  arranged  that  the 
children  of  two  rival  branches  of  the  Imperial  family  should 
succeed  each  other  alternately.  This  it  was,  in  part  at  least,  which 
led  to  the  civil  war  in  the  fourteenth  century  between  what  were 
known  as  "  the  Northern  and  Southern  Courts ; "  for  it  was  of 
course  impossible  that  so  extraordinary  an  arrangement  should 
long  be  adhered  to  without  producing  violent  dissensions. 


14  Acupuncture. 

After  a  time,  it  became  so  generally  recognised  that  the 
monarch  in  name  must  not  be  monarch  in  fact,  and  vice  versa, 
that  abdication,  or  rather  deposition  (for  that  is  what  it  practically 
amounted  to),  was  almost  a  sine  qua  non  of  the  inheritance  of  such 
scanty  shreds  of  authority  as  imperious  ministers  still  deigned  to 
leave  to  their  nominal  lords  and  masters.  When  a  Mikado 
abdicated,  he  was  said  to  ascend  to  the  rank  of  abdicated  Mikado. 
It  was  no  longer  necessary,  as  at  an  earlier  period,  to  sham 
asceticism.  The  abdicated  Mikado  surrounded  himself  with  wives 
and  a  whole  Court,  and  sometimes  really  helped  to  direct  public 
affairs.  Nor  was  abdication  confined  to  sovereigns.  Heads  of 
noble  houses  abdicated  too.  In  later  times  the  middle  and  lower 
classes  began  to  imitate  their  betters.  Until  the  period  of  the  late 
revolution,  it  was  an  almost  universal  custom  for  a  man  to  become 
what  is  termed  an  inkyo  after  passing  middle  age.  Inkyo  means 
literally  "dwelling  in  retirement."  He  who  enters  on  this  state 
gives  over  his  property  to  his  heirs,  generally  resigns  all  office,  and 
lives  on  the  bounty  of  his  children,  free  to  devote  himself  hence- 
forth to  pleasure  or  to  study.  Old  age  being  so  extraordinarily 
honoured  in  Japan,  the  inkyo  has  no  reason  to  dread  Lear's  fate. 
He  knows  that  he  will  always  be  dutifully  tended  by  sons  who  are 
not  waiting  to  find  out  "  how  the  old  man  will  cut  up."  The  new 
government  of  Japan  is  endeavouring  to  put  a  stop  to  the  practice 
of  inkyo,  as  being  barbarous  because  not  European.  But  to  the 
people  at  large  it  appears,  on  the  contrary,  barbarous  that  a  man 
should  go  on  toiling  and  striving,  when  past  the  time  of  life  at 
which  he  is  fitted  to  do  good  work. 

Book  recommended.      The  Gakushikaiin,  by  Walter  Dening,  printed  in  Vol.  XV. 
Part  I.  of  the  "  Asiatic  Transactions,"  p.  72  et  seq. 

Acupuncture.  Acupuncture,  one  of  the  three  great  nostrums 
of  the  practitioners  of  the  Far  East  (the  other  two  being  massage 
and  the  moxa),  was  brought  over  from  China  to  Japan  before  the 
dawn  of  history.  Dr.  W.  N.  Whitney  describes  it  as  follows  in  his 
Notes  on  the  History  of  Medical  Progress  in  Japan,  published  in 
Vol.  XII.  Part  IV.  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions,"  p.  354  : — 


Adams.  15 

"As  practised  by  the  Japanese  acupuncturists,  the  operation 
consists  in  perforating  the  skin  and  underlying  tissues  to  a  depth, 
as  a  rule,  not  exceeding  one-half  to  three-quarters  of  an  inch,  with 
fine  needles  of  gold,  silver,  or  steel.  The  form  and  construction 
of  these  needles  vary,  but,  generally  speaking,  they  are  several 
inches  long,  and  of  an  average  diameter  of  one  forty-eighth  of  an 
inch.  Each  needle  is  usually  fastened  into  a  handle,  which  is 
spirally  grooved  from  end  to  end. 

"To  perform  the  operation,  the  handle  of  the  needle  is  held 
lightly  between  the  thumb  and  first  finger  of  the  left  hand,  the 
point  resting  upon  the  spot  to  be  punctured.  A  slight  blow  is 
then  given  upon  the  head  of  the  instrument  with  a  small  mallet 
held  in  the  right  hand  ;  and  the  needle  is  gently  twisted  until  its 
point  has  penetrated  to  the  desired  depth,  where  it  is  left  for  a  few 
seconds  and  then  slowly  withdrawn,  and  the  skin  in  the  vicinity  of 
the  puncture  rubbed  for  a  few  moments.  The  number  of  perfora- 
tions ranges  from  one  to  twenty,  and  they  are  usually  made  in  the 
skin  of  the  abdomen,  although  other  portions  of  the  body  are  not 
unfrequently  punctured." 

Adams  (Will).  Will  Adams,  the  first  Englishman  that  ever 
resided  in  Japan,  was  a  native  of  Gillingham,  near  Chatham,  in  the 
county  of  Kent.  Having  followed  the  sea  from  his  youth  up,  he 
took  service,  in  the  year  1598,  as  "Pilot  Maior  of  a  fleeteoffive 
sayle,"  which  had  been  equipped  by  Dutch  merchants  for  the  pur- 
pose of  trading  to  Spanish  America.  From  "  Perow"  a  portion  of 
the  storm-tossed  fleet  came  on  to  "  Iapon,"  arriving  at  a  port  in  the 
province  of  Bungo,  not  far  from  "  Langasacke  "  (Nagasaki),  on  the 
19th  April,  1600.  From  that  time  until  his  death  in  May  1620, 
Adams  remained  in  an  exile  which,  though  gilded,  was  none  the 
less  bitterly  deplored.  The  English  pilot,  brought  first  as  a 
captive  into  the  presence  of  Ieyasu,  who  was  then  on  the  point  of 
becoming  practically  what  Adams  calls  him,  "Emperour"  of 
Japan,  had  immediately  been  recognised  by  that  shrewd  judge  of 
character  as  an  able  and  an  honest  man.     That  he  and  his  nation 


1 6  Adams. 

were  privately  slandered  to  Ieyasu  by  "  the  Iesuites  and  the 
Portingalls,"  who  were  at  that  time  the  only  other  Europeans  in 
the  country,  probably  did  him  more  good  than  harm  in  the 
Japanese  ruler's  eyes.  He  was  retained  at  the  Japanese  court,  and 
employed  as  a  shipbuilder,  and  also  as  a  kind  of  diplomatic  agent 
when  other  English  and  Dutch  traders  began  to  arrive.  In  fact, 
it  was  by  his  good  offices  that  the  foundations  were  laid  both  of 
English  trade  in  Japan  and  also  of  the  more  permanent  Dutch 
settlement.  During  his  latter  years,  he  for  a  time  exchanged  the 
Japanese  service  for  that  of  the  English  factory  established  by 
Captain  John  Saris  at  "  Firando  "  (Hirado)  near  Nagasaki ;  and  he 
made  two  voyages,  one  to  the  Luchu  Islands  and  another  to  Siam. 
His  constantly  reiterated  desire  to  see  his  native  land  again,  and 
his  wife  and  children,  was  to  the  last  frustrated  by  adverse  cir- 
cumstances. So  far  as  the  wife  was  concerned,  he  partially 
comforted  himself,  sailor  fashion,  by  taking  another, — a  Japanese 
with  whom  he  lived  comfortably  for  many  years  on  the  estate 
granted  him  by  Ieyasu  at  Hemi,  where  their  two  graves  are  shown 
to  this  day.  Hemi,  at  that  time  a  separate  village,  has  since 
become  a  suburb  of  the  bustling  modern  seaport,  Yokosuka,  and 
a  railway  station  now  occupies  the  site  of  the  old  pilot's  abode. 
Another  adventurer,  who  visited  him  there,  describes  Will  Adams's 
place  thus  :  "  This  Phebe*  is  a  Lordshipp  geuen  to  Capt.  Adames 
pr.  the  ould  Emperour,f  to  hym  and  his  for  eaver,  and  confermed 
to  his  sonne,  called  Joseph.  There  is  above  ioo  farms,  or  hows- 
holds,  vppon  it,  besides  others  vnder  them,  all  which  are  his 
vassalls,  and  he  hath  power  of  lyfe  and  death  ouer  them  they  being 
his  slaues ;  and  he  hauing  as  absolute  authoritie  ouer  them  as  any 
tono  (or  king)  in  Japan  hath  over  his  vassales."  From  further 
details  it  would  seem  that  he  used  his  authority  kindly,  so  that 
the  neighbours  "  reioiced  (as  it  should  seeme)  of  Captain  Adames 
retorne." 


*  Our  author  means  Hemi. 
t  Ieyasu  was  then  dead. 


Adoption.  1 7 

Will  Adams's  letters  have  been  published  by  the  Hakluyt 
Society  in  their  "Memorials  of  Japon  "  (sic),  and  republished  in  a 
cheaper  form  at  Yokohama.  They  are  well-worth  reading,  both 
for  the  lifelike  silhouette  of  the  writer  which  stands  out  from  their 
quaintly  spelt  pages,  and  for  the  picture  given  by  him  of  Japan 
as  it  then  was,  when  the  land  swarmed  with  Catholic  friars  and 
Catholic  converts,  when  no  embargo  had  yet  been  laid  on  foreign 
commerce,  and  when  the  native  energy  of  the  Japanese  people 
had  not  yet  been  numbed  by  two  centuries  and  a  half  of 
bureaucracy  and  timid  seclusion. 

Adoption.  It  is  strange,  but  true,  that  you  may  often  go 
into  a  Japanese  family  and  find  half-a-dozen  persons  calling  each 
other  parent  and  child,  brother  and  sister,  uncle  and  nephew,  and 
yet  being  really  either  no  blood-relations  at  all,  or  else  relations 
in  quite  different  degrees  from  those  conventionally  assumed. 
Galton's  books  could  never  have  been  written  in  Japan ;  for 
though  genealogies  are  carefully  kept,  they  mean  nothing,  at  least 
from  a  scientific  point  of  view, — so  universal  is  the  practice  of 
adoption,  from  the  top  of  society  to  the  bottom.  This  it  is  which 
explains  such  apparent  anomalies  as  a  distinguished  painter,  potter, 
actor,  or  what  not,  almost  always  having  a  son  distinguished  in 
the  same  line  : — he  has  simply  adopted  his  best  pupil.  It  also 
explains  the  fact  of  Japanese  families  not  dying  out. 

So  completely  has  adoption  become  part  and  parcel  of  the 
national  life  that  Mr.  Shigeno  An-eki,  the  best  Japanese  authority 
on  the  subject,  enumerates  no  less  than  ten  different  categories  of 
adopted  persons.  Adoption  is  resorted  to,  not  only  to  prevent 
the  extinction  of  families  and  the  consequent  neglect  of  the  spirits 
of  the  departed,  but  also  in  order  to  regulate  the  size  of  families. 
Thus,  a  man  with  too  many  children  hands  over  one  or  more  of 
them  to  some  friend  who  has  none.  To  adopt  a  person  is  also  the 
simplest  way  to  leave  him  money,  it  not  being  usual  in  Japan  to 
nominate  strangers  as  one's  heirs.  Formerly,  too,  it  was  some- 
times a  means  of  money-making,  not  to  the  adopted,  but  to  the 


1 8  Adoption. 

adopter.  "  It  was  customary  " — so  writes  the  authority  whom  we 
quote  below — "for  the  sons  of  the  court-nobles,  when  they  reached 
the  age  of  majority,  to  receive  an  income  from  the  Government. 
It  often  happened  that  when  an  officer  had  a  son  who  was,  say, 
only  two  or  three  years  old,  he  would  adopt  a  lad  who  was 
about  fifteen  (the  age  of  majority),  and  then  apply  for  a  grant  of 
land  or  rice  for  him  ;  after  he  had  secured  this,  he  would  make 
his  own  son  the yoshi  [adopted  son]  of  the  newly  adopted  youth, 
and  thus,  when  the  former  came  of  age,  the  officer  was  entitled 
to  apply  for  another  grant  of  land." — With  this  may  be  compared 
the  plan  often  followed  by  business  people  at  the  present  day. 
A  merchant  adopts  his  head  clerk,  in  order  to  give  him  a  personal 
interest  in  the  firm.  The  clerk  then  adopts  his  patron's  son,  with 
the  understanding  that  he  himself  is  to  retire  in  the  latter's  favour 
when  the  latter  shall  be  of  a  suitable  age.  If  the  clerk  has  a 
son,  then  perhaps  that  son  will  be  adopted  by  the  patron's  son. 
Thus  a  sort  of  alternate  headship  is  kept  up,  the  surname  always 
remaining  the  same. 

For  some  time  after  the  late  revolution,  adoption  was  a  favourite 
method  of  evading  the  conscription,  as  only-sons  were  exempted 
from  serving.  Fond  parents,  anxious  to  assist  a  favourite  son  to 
this  exemption,  would  cause  him  to  be  adopted  by  some  childless 
friend.  After  a  few  years,  it  might  perhaps  be  possible  to  arrange 
for  the  lad's  return  to  his  former  family  and  resumption  of  his 
original  surname. 

Until  quite  recently  the  sole  way  in  which  a  foreigner  could  be 
naturalised  was  by  getting  a  Japanese  with  a  daughter  to  adopt 
him,  and  then  marrying  the  daughter.  This  may  sound  like  a 
joke,  but  it  is  not.  It  is  a  sober,  legal  fact,  recognised  as  such 
by  the  various  judicial  and  consular  authorities,  and  acted  on  in 
several  well-authenticated  instances.  Indeed,  it  is  still  the  easiest 
method  to  be  pursued  by  those  desirous  of  naturalising  themselves 
in  this  country. 

We  recommend,  as  a  good  occupation  for  a  rainy  day,  the 
endeavour  to  trace  out  the  real   relationships    (in  our   European 


Agriculture.  19 

sense  of  the  word)  of  some  of  the  reader's  Japanese  servants  or 
friends.  Unless  we  are  much  mistaken,  this  will  prove  to  be 
a  puzzle  of  the  highest  order  of  difficulty.  (See  also  Article  on 
Marriage.) 

Book  recommended.     The  Gakushikaiin,  by  Walter  Dening,  printed  in  Vol.  XV. 
Part  T.  of  the  "  Asiatic  Transactions,"  p.  72  et  seq. 

Agriculture.  Till  recently  the  Japanese  had  neither  manu- 
factures nor  foreign  commerce,  neither  have  they  yet  any  flocks 
of  sheep  and  goats,  any  droves  of  geese,  turkeys,  or  pigs.  Even 
cattle  are  comparatively  scarce,  and  neither  their  flesh  nor  their 
milk  is  in  general  use,  beef  being  still  regarded  as  a  luxury,  and 
milk  rather  as  a  medicine  than  a  food.  The  pasture  meadow  and 
the  farmyard  are  alike  lacking.  Here,  far  more  than  in  the  West, 
agriculture  in  its  narrower  sense  has  been  all  in  all,  forming  the 
basis  on  which  the  whole  social  fabric  rests.  Justly,  therefore,  in 
feudal  times,  did  the  peasantry  rank  next  to  the  Samurai  or  gentry, 
and  before  the  merchants  and  mechanics.  Even  under  the  new 
regime,  more  than  half  the  population  is  engaged  in  field  labour, 
and  nearly  half  the  national  revenue  flows  from  that  source. 
There  are  no  large  landed  proprietors.  As  a  rule,  each  farmer 
or  peasant  tills  his  own  field  with  the  help  of  his  sons  and  often 
his  wife  and  daughters ;  and  the  land  is  really  his  own,  for 
the  doctrine  that  everything  belongs  absolutely  to  the  Emperor 
is,  of  course,  only  a  convenient  legal  fiction.  No  wonder  that 
he  works  with  a  will. 

In  this  land  of  mountains,  barely  twelve  per  cent,  of  the  entire 
surface  can  be  cultivated,  and  even  the  cultivable  portion  is  not 
highly  fertile  by  nature.  It  is  made  so  by  subsoil  working,  by 
minutely  careful  weeding,  by  manure  judiciously  and  laboriously 
applied,  by  terracing,  and  by  an  elaborate  method  of  irrigation. 
The  whole  agricultural  system  came  from  China,  and  has  altered 
little  since  the  earliest  ages.  The  peasantry  are  the  most  conserva- 
tive class  in  the  nation,  and  their  implements  still  strangely 
primitive, — the  plough  in  common  use,  for  instance,  differing  little 
rom   that  of  Egypt  in  the  time  of  the  Pharaohs.     The  hoe  is  in 


20  Agriculture. 

great  request.  Spades  of  various  shapes,  harrows,  and  sickles  are 
also  used,  together  with  an  extremely  rude  type  of  flail  and 
stamping-trough ;  but  Japanese  rural  economy  knows  nothing  of 
wagons  or  wheelbarrows. 

The  Chinese  and  Japanese  enumerate  five  cereals  as  the  staples 
to  which  agricultural  labour  should  be  devoted.  These  are  rice, 
barley,  wheat,  millet,  and  beans.*  But  rice  ranks  above  all  the 
rest, — equal  in  fact  to  all  the  others  put  together.  These  others 
are  grown  chiefly  as  winter  crops,  when  the  rice-fields  have  to  lie 
fallow,  or  else  in  small  patches,  or  on  the  higher  ground,  which 
want  of  water  or  a  harsher  climate  renders  unfit  for  the  cultivation 
of  the  more  important  commodity. 

The  preparation  of  the  rice-fields —  "paddy-fields,"  as  Europeans 
often  call  them — is  extremely  arduous,  involving  not  only  much 
hoeing,  but  the  construction  of  perforated  mud  dams  and  a  whole 
system  of  terracing,  whereby  water  from  a  neighbouring  stream 
is  led  gradually  down  from  field  to  field ; — for  all  high-class  rice 
requires  flooding,  only  an  inferior  sort  being  grown  in  the  dry. 
Various  manures  are  employed.  The  commonest  is  night-soil, 
whose  daily  conveyance  all  about  the  country  apparently  causes 
no  distress  to  native  noses.  The  seed  is  sown  in  small  beds  about 
the  end  of  April,  and  it  sprouts  in  five  or  six  days.  Early  in  June, 
the  young  shoots  are  plucked  up  and  transplanted  in  rows.  The 
generally  lifeless  fields  may  at  that  time  be  seen  full  of  men  and 
women  standing  knee-deep  in  the  water  and  mud.  Then  comes 
the  hot  summer.  What  traveller  in  Japan  will  not  recall,  as  the 
most  characteristic  feature  of  the  summer  landscape,  those  fields 
of  vivid  green,  separated — chessboard-like — into  squares  which  fill 
a  gradually  widening  valley  flanked  by  hills  that  rise  abruptly,  as 
if  the  whole  had  been  cut  out  by  the  hand  of  man,  as  indeed  it 
has  through  centuries  of  terracing  ? 

The  rice-plant  blossoms  early  in  September,  is  reaped  in 
October,  and  then  hung  up  on  short  poles.     Threshing  is  done 

*  The  enumeration  has  differed  slightly  according  to  time  and  place. 


Agriculture.  2 1 

either  with  the  primitive  flails  above  mentioned,  or  with  a  sort 
of  large  comb  or  heckle.  Many  Europeans  believe  that  two 
rice  crops  are  produced  in  the  year.  This  occurs  as  a  solitary 
exception  in  the  province  of  Tosa,  where  the  warming  effect  of 
the  Kuro-shio,  or  Japanese  Gulf  Stream,  makes  itself  felt  with 
special  energy.  Elsewhere  such  a  thing  is  rendered  impossible 
by  the  length  and  severity  of  the  winter. 

Japanese  rice  is  highly  esteemed  throughout  the  neighbouring 
countries,  on  account  of  its  glutinous  nature.  The  manner  in 
which  it  is  cooked  makes  it  exceptionally  palatable  and  nutritious, 
quite  different  from  the  Indian  process  which  leaves  each  grain 
separate  and  dry.  Every  one  lives  on  it  who  can  afford  to  do 
so;  but  as  a  rule,  the  peasantry  cannot.  Wheat,  barley,  and 
especially  millet,  are  the  real  staples  throughout  the  rural  districts, 
rice  being  there  treated  as  a  luxury  to  be  brought  out  only  on  high 
days  and  holidays,  or  to  be  resorted  to  in  case  of  sickness.  We 
once  heard  a  beldame  in  a  country  village  remark  to  another,  with 
a  grave  shake  of  the  head  :  "  What !  do  you  mean  to  say  that  it 
has  come  to  having  to  give  her  rice  ?  " — the  unexpressed  inference 
being  that  the  patient's  case  must  be  alarming  indeed,  if  the  family 
had  thought  it  necessary  to  resort  to  so  expensive  a  dainty. 

The  market  price  of  rice  is  quoted  on  'change  at  so  much  per 
^y<?  ("bag")*  ;  but  the  retail  vendors  sell  it  at  so  many  slid  and 
go  per  yen  (Japanese  dollar).  In  other  words,  in  large  transactions 
it  is  a  fixed  amount  of  the  commodity  itself  that  sells  for  a  variable 
sum ;  in  small  purchases  it  is  a  fixed  sum  that  is  given  for  a 
variable  amount  of  the  commodity.  The  former  method  of  calcu- 
lation is  familiar  only  to  business  men.  But  every  pater  and 
mater-familias  takes  a  keen — not  to  say  painful — interest  in 
knowing  whether  rice  is,  say,  6  sho  1  go  per  yen,,  or  has  advanced 
to  5  sho  9  go.  Four  or  five  grades  are  habitually  quoted,  of 
which  the  extremes  differ  about  20  per  cent,  in  price.  Japanese 
rice  is  exported  as  a  luxury  to  the  neighbouring  continent  of  Asia, 

*  See  Article  on  Weights  and  Measures. 


22  Ainos. 

which  in  return  sends  its  poorer  quality  to  be  bought  cheap  by 
the  Japanese  lower  classes.  Hence  the  apparent  anomaly  that 
rice  appears  alike  among  Japanese  imports  and  exports. 

In  the  extreme  south  the  sweet  potato,  which  was  introduced 
as  late  as  A.D.  1698,  now  forms  the  chief  food  of  the  common 
people.  Besides  the  cereals,  vegetables  of  various  sorts  are  raised, 
but  are  eaten  chiefly  pickled  and  in  small  quantities. 

Some  few  of  the  principal  agricultural  industries,  such  as 
tea,  camphor,  and  lacquer,  will  be  found  treated  in  separate 
articles. 

Books  recommended.  For  a  careful  general  account,  Rein's  Industries  of  Ja/an. 
— For  fuller  technical  details,  Dr.  M.  Fesca's  Beitrage  zur  Kenniniss  der  japanischen 
Landiuirt  schaft ,  and  shorter  articles  by  the  same  in  the  "  German  Asiatic  Transactions." 
—  Dr.  K.  Rathgen's  Japan 's  Volks%virthscliaft  tend  Staatshazishalt. — The  laws  and 
customs  of  the  peasantry  are  treated  with  interesting  minuteness  in  Simmons'  and 
Wigmore's  Notes  on  Land  Tenure  and  Local  Institutions  in  Old  Japan,  published  in  Vol. 
XIX.  Part  I.  of  the  "  Asiatic  Transactions." 

Ainos.  The  Ainos,  called  by  themselves  Ainu,  that  is  "  men," 
are  a  very  peculiar  race,  now  inhabiting  only  the  northern  island 
of  Yezo,  but  formerly  widely  spread  all  over  the  Japanese 
archipelago.  The  Japanese  proper,  arriving  from  the  south-west, 
gradually  pressed  the  Ainos  back  towards  the  east  and  north. 
It  was  only  in  the  eighteenth  century  that  they  were  completely 
subjugated.  In  retreating,  the  aborigines  left  the  country  strewn 
with  place-names  belonging  to  their  own  language.  Such  are,  for 
instance,  Nolo,  the  name  of  the  big  promontory  stretching  out  into 
the  Sea  of  Japan  {itotiu  means  "  promontory  "  in  Aino),  the  Tone- 
gawa,  or  River  Tone,  near  Tokyo  {ianne  is  Aino  for  "long"), 
and  hundreds  of  others.  So  far  as  blood,  however,  is  concerned, 
the  Japanese  have  in  the  long  run  been  little,  if  at  all,  affected  by 
Aino  influence.  The  simple  reason  is  that  the  half-breeds,  though 
numerous,  die  out  in  the  second  or  third  generation.  The  Ainos 
are  the  hairiest  race  in  the  world,  their  luxuriantly  thick 
black  beards  and  hirsute  limbs  giving  them  an  appearance  which 
contrasts  strangely  with  the  smoothness  of  their  Japanese  lords 
and  masters.     They  are  of  sturdy  build,  and  distinguished  by  a 


Ainos.  23 

flattening  of  certain  bones  of  the  arm  and  leg  (the  humerus  and 
tibia),  which  has  been  observed  nowhere  else  except  in  the  remains 
of  some  of  the  cave-men  of  Europe.  The  women  tattoo  mous- 
taches on  their  upper  lip,  and  geometrical  patterns  on  their  hands. 
Both  sexes  are  of  a  mild  and  amiable  disposition,  but  are  terribly 
addicted  to  drunkenness.  They  are  filthy  in  their  persons,  the 
practice  of  bathing  being  altogether  unknown.* 

The  Ainos  were  till  recently  accustomed  to  live  on  the  produce 
of  the  chase  and  the  sea  fisheries ;  but  both  these  sources  of 
subsistence  have  diminished  since  the  settling  of  the  island  by  the 
Japanese.  Consequently  they  no  longer  hold  up  their  heads  as 
in  former  days,  and  notwithstanding  the  well-intentioned  efforts  of 
a  paternal  government,  they  seem  doomed  to  disappear,  though  it 
is  true  that  during  the  last  twenty  years  their  numbers  have 
remained  stationary  at  about  17,000.  Their  religion  is  a  simple 
nature- worship.  The  sun,  wind,  ocean,  bear,  etc.,  are  deified 
under  the  title  of  Kamui,  "god,"  and  whittled  sticks  are  setup 
in  their  honour.  The  bear,  though  worshipped,  is  also  sacrificed 
and  eaten  with  solemnities  that  form  the  most  original  and 
picturesque  feature  of  Aino  life.  Grace  is  said  before  meat.  Mr. 
Batchelor  quotes  the  following  naive  and  touching  form  of  words  : 
"  O  thou  Cereal  Deity,  we  worship  thee.  Thou  hast  grown  very 
well  this  yeS",  and  thy  flavour  will  be  sweet.  Thou  art  good. 
The  Goddess  of  Fire  will  be  glad,  and  we  shall  rejoice  greatly. 

0  thou  God  !     O  thou  divine  Cereal !    do  thou  nourish  the  people. 

1  now  partake  of  thee.  I  worship  thee  and  give  thee  thanks." 
These  poor  people  also  treasure  up  numbers  of  charms  or  fetiches, 
such  as  feathers,  snake-skins,  the  skulls  of  beasts  or  birds,  etc., 
and  their  minds  are  saturated  with  a  belief  in  various  forms  of 
magic  and  witchcraft. 

Some  of  the  Aino  tales  are  quaint.  Most  of  them  embody  an 
attempt  to  account  for  some  natural  phenomenon.      The  following 

*  Would-be  investigators  of  Aino  peculiarities  should  exercise  scrupulous  care  in  their 
choice  of  individuals  for  study,  as  almost  every  Aino  village  now  includes  a  considerable 
percentage  of  half-breeds. 


24  Ainos. 

may  serve  as  a  specimen  : — 

WHY  DOGS  CANNOT  SPEAK. 

Formerly  dogs  could  speak.  Now  they  cannot.  The  reason  is 
that  a  dog  belonging  to  a  certain  man,  a  long  time  ago,  inveigled  his 
master  into  the  forest  under  the  pretext  of  showing  him  game,  and 
there  caused  him  to  be  devoured  by  a  bear.  Then  the  dog  went 
home  to  his  ?naslers  widow,  and  lied  to  her,  saying  :  "  My  master 
has  been  killed  by  a  bear.  But  when  he  was  dying,  he  commanded 
me  to  tell  you  to  marry  ??ie  in  his  stead."  The  widow  knew  that  the 
dog  was  lying.  But  he  kept  on  urging  her  to  marry  him.  So  at  last, 
in  her  grief  and  rage,  she  threw  a  handful  of  dust  into  his  open 
mouth.  This  made  him  unable  to  speak  any  more,  and  therefore  no 
dogs  can  speak  even  to  this  very  day. 

The  Aino  language  is  simple  and  harmonious.  Its  structure  in 
great  measure  resembles  that  of  Japanese ;  but  there  are  some  few- 
fundamental  divergences,  such,  for  instance,  as  the  possession  of 
true  personal  pronouns  and  the  formation  of  the  passive  voice  by 
a  prefix.  The  vocabulary,  too,  is  quite  distinct.  The  system  of 
counting  is  extraordinarily  cumbrous.  Thus,  if  a  man^wants  to  say 
that  he  is  thirty-nine  years  old,  he  must  express  nimself  thus  : 
"I  am  nine,  plus  ten  taken  from  two  score."  In  Mr.  Batchelor's 
translation  of  Matthew  XII.  40,  the  phrase  "  forty  days  and  forty 
nights  "  is  thus  rendered  :  tokap  rere  ko  tu  hotne  rere  ko,  kunne  rere 
ko  tu  hotne  rere  ko,  that  is,  "  day  three  days  two  score  three  days, 
black  three  days  two  score  three  days."  Little  wonder  that  the 
simpler  Japanese  numeration  has  come  to  supplant,  in  the  mouths 
of  many,  this  next  to  unmanageable  system.  In  fact,  the  younger 
generation  seems  to  be  discarding  the  native  language  altogether 
in  favour  of  Japanese.  Hitherto  the  Aino  have  known  nothing  of 
the  use  of  letters.  Tales  like  the  one  we  have  quoted,  and  rude 
songs  which  are  handed  down  orally  from  generation  to  generation, 
form  their  only  literature. 


Amusements.  25 

Books  recommended.  The  Ainu  of  Japan,  by  Rev.  J.  Batcholor,  gives  the  most 
trustworthy  general  account  in  a  popular  form.  See  also  Mrs'.  Bishop's  Unbeaten  Tracks 
in  Japan. — Students  are  referred  to  the  First  Memoir  of  the  Literature  College  of  the 
Imperial  University  of  Japan,  by  Chamberlain  and  Batchelor,  for  full  details  concerning 
Aino  mythology,  grammar,  place-names,  etc. ;  to  the  former  writer's  Aino  Folk-lore,  in 
Vol.  VI.  Part  I.  of  the  Folk-lore  Journal,  and  to  numerous  papers  by  Batchelor  scattered 
through  the  Asiatic  Transactions,  etc.  The  same  author  has  published  an  Ainu-English 
Dictionary,  The  Ainu  and  their  Folk-lore,  A  Brochure  on  the  Koropok-guru  or  Pit-dwellers 
of  North  Japan,  etc  The  Memoir  above  quoted  gives  a  fairly  complete  bibliography 
of  Yezo  and  the  Ainos. — The  best  Japanese  work  on  the  subject  is  the  Ezo  F"uzoku 
Isan,  published  by  the  Kaitakushi  in  1882.     It  is  in  twenty  volumes. 

Amusements.  The  favourite  amusements  of  the  Japanese  are 
the  ordinary  theatre  {shibai)  ;  the  No  theatre,  (but  this  is  attended 
chiefly  by  the  aristocracy) ;  wrestling  matches,  — witnessing,  not 
taking  part  in  them  ;  dinners  enlivened  by  the  performances  of 
singing  and  dancing-girls ;  visits  to  temples,  as  much  for  purposes 
of  pleasure  as  of  devotion ;  picnics  to  places  famous  for  their 
scenery,  and  especially  to  places  noted  for  some  particular  blossom, 
such  as  the  plum,  cherry,  or  wistaria.  The  Japanese  also  divert 
themselves  by  composing  verses  in  their  own  language  and  in 
Chinese,  and  by  playing  chess,  checkers,  and  various  games  of  the 
"  Mother  Goose "  description,  of  which  sugoroku  is  the  chief. 
Ever  since  the  early  days  of  foreign  intercourse  they  have  likewise 
had  certain  kinds  of  cards,  of  which  the  hana-garuta,  or  "  flower- 
cards,"  are  the  most  popular  kind, — so  popular,  indeed,  and 
seductive  that  there  is  an  official  veto  on  playing  the  game  for 
money.  The  cards  are  forty-eight  in  number,  four  for  each  month 
of  the  year,  the  months  being  distinguished  by  the  flowers  proper 
to  them,  and  an  extra  value  being  attached  to  one  out  of  each 
set  of  four,  which  is  further  distinguished  by  a  bird  or  butterfly, 
and  to  a  second  which  is  inscribed  with  a  line  of  poetry.  Three 
people  take  part  in  the  game,  and  there  is  a  pool.  The  system 
of  counting  is  rather  complicated,  but  the  ideas  involved  are  grace- 
ful. There  is  another  game  of  cards,  in  which  stanzas  from  what 
are  known  as  the  "  Hundred  Poets "  take  the  place  of  flowers. 
At  this  game  no  gambling  is  ever  indulged  in.  It  is  rather  an 
amusement  for  family  parties,  who  at  New  Year  time  often  sit  up 
over  it  all  night. 


26  Amusements. 

Some  of  the  above  diversions  are  shared  in  by  the  ladies ;  but 
take  it  altogether,  their  mode  of  life  is  much  duller  than 
that  of  their  European  sisters.  Confucian  ideas  concerning  the 
subjection  of  women  still  obtain  to  a  great  extent.  Women  are 
not,  it  is  true,  actually  shut  up,  as  in  India ;  but  it  is  considered 
that  their  true  vocation  is  to  sit  at  home.  Hence  visiting  is  much 
less  practised  in  Japan  than  with  us.  It  is  further  to  be  observed, 
to  the  credit  of  the  Japanese,  that  amusement,  though  permitted,  is 
never  exalted  by  them  to  the  rank  of  the  great  and  serious  business 
of  life.  In  England — at  least  among  the  upper  classes — a  man's 
shooting,  fishing,  and  golf,  a  girl's  dances,  garden-parties,  and 
country-house  visitings  appear  to  be  the  centre  round  which  all  the 
family  plans  revolve.  In  Japan,  on  the  contrary,  amusements  are 
merely  picked  up  by  the  way,  and  are  all  the  more  appreciated.* 

Some  sixteen  or  seventeen  years  ago,  it  looked  as  if  the  state  of 
things  here  sketched  were  about  to  undergo  considerable  modifi- 
cation. Poker,  horse-racing,  even  shooting  and  lawn-tennis,  had 
begun  to  find  devotees  among  Japanese  men,  while  the  fair  sex, 
abandoning  their  own  charming  costume  for  the  corsets  and  fur- 
belows of  Europe,  were  seen  boldly  to  join  in  the  ball-room  fray. 
True,  as  Netto  wittily  remarks  in  his  Papier schmeiterlinge  aus 
Japan,  "most  of  them  showed  by  the  expression  of  their  faces  that 
they  were  making  a  sacrifice  on  the  altar  of  civilisation."  Happily 
a  reaction  supervened,  older  customs  and  costumes  were  resumed, 
and  on  the  now  very  rare  occasions  when  Japanese  ladies  enter  a 
ball-room,  it  is  as  spectators  only,  and  in  their  infinitely  more 
attractive  native  garb. 

The  sports  of  Japanese  children  include  kite-flying,  top-spinning, 
battledoor  and  shuttlecock,  making  snow  men,  playing  with  dolls, 
etc.,  etc., — in  fact,  most  of  our  old  nursery  friends,  but  modified 
by  the  genius  loci.  The  large,  grotesquely  coloured  papier-mache 
dogs  given  to  babies,  often  by  the  kennelful,  owe  their  origin  to 

*  A  critic  of  the  first  edition  humorously  suggested  that,  had  the  author  been  a  merchant, 
he  would  have  reversed  this  dictum,  and  have  said  that  that  which  the  Japanese  merely 
picked  up  by  the  way  was  business  ! 


Archaeology.  2  7 

some  idea  of  the  dog  as  a  faithful  protector,  more  especially  against 
onslaughts  by  evil  spirits.     (See  also  Article  on  Polo.) 

Books  recommended.  Child- Life  in  Japan,  by  Mrs.  Chaplin-  Ayrton.— Children's 
Games  and  Sports,  in  Griffis'  "Mikado's  Empire." — Hana-azuase  (Japanese  Cards),  by 
the  late  Major-General  Palmer,  R.  £.,  in  Vol.  XIX.  Part  III.  of  the  "Asiatic  Trans- 
actions." 

Archaeology.  The  remains  of  Japanese  antiquity  fall  natural- 
ly into  two  classes,  which  it  is  in  most  cases  easy  to  distinguish 
from  each  other.  The  first  consists  of  objects  connected  with  that 
early  race  of  which  only  a  small  remnant  now  lingers  in  the  Amos 
of  Yezo,  but  which  at  one  time  •  probably  occupied  all  the  Japanese 
islands.  The  second  comprises  the  relics  of  the  immigrants  from 
the  neighbouring  continent  of  Asia,  whose  descendants  constitute 
the  bulk  of  the  present  Japanese  nation. 

To  the  former  class  belong  various  objects  familiar  to  us  in 
Europe,  such  as  stone  implements  and  weapons.  Some  of  these  are 
peculiar  to  Japan,  though  on  the  whole  the  resemblance  to  those 
found  in  more  Western  lands  is  very  striking.  Flint  celts  are 
perhaps  the  most  common  type ;  and  it  is  curious  to  note  that  in 
Japan,  as  in  the  British  Isles,  the  popular  imagination  has  given 
them  the  name  of  "  thunder-bolts."  Stone  clubs,  plain  or  adorned 
with  carvings,  have  been  found  in  considerable  numbers.  One 
of  these,  described  by  the  late  Baron  Kanda,  measures  five  feet  in 
length  and  nearly  five  inches  in  diameter,  and  must  have  been  a 
truly  formidable  weapon  when  wielded  by  adequate  hands.  There 
are  also  stone  swords,  pestles,  daggers,  and  a  variety  of  miscellane- 
ous objects,  some  of  unknown  use.  The  material  of  all  these  is 
polished  stone.  Chipped  flints  are  not  unknown,  but  occur  chiefly 
in  the  form  of  arrow  or  spear-heads  for  which  a  high  degree  of 
workmanship  was  less  necessary. 

An  interesting  discovery  was  made  in  1878  by  Professor  Morse 
near  the  Omori  station  of  the  Tokyo- Yokohama  railway.  He 
found  that  the  railway  cutting  at  this  place  passed  through  mounds 
identical  in  character  with  the  "kitchen-middens"  of  Denmark, 
which  have  attracted  so  much  attention  in  Europe.     They   con- 


28  Archaeology. 

tained  shells  in  large  quantities,  fragments  of  broken  bones, 
implements  of  stone  and  horn,  and  pottery  of  a  special  type,  which 
differed  from  the  ancient  Japanese  earthenware  in  being  hand-made 
instead  of  turned  on  a  wheel,  and  also  in  shape  and  ornamentation. 
Human  bones  were  among  those  found,  and  Professor  Morse 
considers  the  way  in  which  they  had  been  broken  to  be  indicative 
of  cannibalism.* 

We  know  from  history  that  the  ancient  Japanese  were  to  some 
extent  pit-dwellers ;  but  no  remains  of  such  dwellings  are  now 
known  to  exist.  In  Yezo,  however,  and  the  adjacent  islands,  large 
numbers  of  pits  which  have  been  .used  as  human  habitations  are 
still  to  be  seen.  They  are  rectangular  in  shape,  measuring  about 
twenty  feet  by  fifteen  feet,  and  having  a  depth  of  three  or  four  feet. 
In  these  were  planted  posts,  over  which  a  roofing  of  thatch  was 
placed.  They  were  probably  occupied  chiefly  as  winter  ■  habi- 
tations. Professor  Milne  thinks  that  they  were  made  by  a  race 
who  inhabited  Yezo  and  the  northern  parts  of  Japan  before  the 
Ainos,  and  who  were  driven  northwards  by  the  encroachments  of 
the  latter.  The  present  inhabitants  of  the  Kurile  Islands  he 
believes  to  be  their  modern  representatives.  Both  they  and  the 
ancestors  of  the  Ainos  must  have  had  a  low  type  of  civilisation. 
They  had  no  iron  or  even  copper  or  bronze  implements,  and  were 
probably  entirely  unacquainted  with  the  art  of  agriculture. 

The  early  history  of  the  continental  race  which  has  peopled 
Japan  is  wrapped  in  obscurity.  Whence  and  when  they  came, 
and  what  was  the  character  of  their  civilisation  at  the  period  of 
their  arrival,  are  questions  to  which  only  the  vaguest  answers  can 
be  given.  The  earliest  notices  of  them,  in  Chinese  literature,  date 
from  the  first  and  second  centuries  of  the  Christian  era.  It  would 
appear  that  the  Japanese  were  then  a  much  more  advanced  race 
than  the  Ainos  ever  became.  They  were  agriculturists,  not  merely  , 
hunters  and  fishers,  and  were  acquainted  with  the  arts  of  weaving, 
brewing,  and  the  building  of  junks.     They  had  a  sovereign  who 

*  These  mounds  were  cleared  away  several  years  ago ;  but  others  have  been  discovered 
at  Tokyo,  on  the  Yokohama  "  Bluff,"  and  at  numerous  other  places. 


Archaeology.  29 

lived  in  a  fortified  palace  of  some  architectural  pretensions,  and 
their  laws  and  customs  are  described  as  strict.  The  earlier  notices 
speak  of  their  having  arrow-heads  of  bone,  but  two  centuries  later 
iron  arrow-heads  are  mentioned.  It  is  uncertain  whether  the 
Japanese  brought  with  them  from  their  continental  home  the  art  of 
working  in  iron  and  other  metals.  It  is  possible  that  all  the 
metallurgical  knowledge  of  which  we  find  them  possessed  at  a 
later  period  was  really  derived  from  China,  and  in  that  case  there 
must  have  been  an  interval  during  which  they  used  stone  imple- 
ments ;  but  of  this  we  have  no  certain  knowledge.  There  is  little 
or  no  evidence  of  a  bronze  age  in  Japan. 

The  archaeological  remains  of  the  ancient  Japanese  may  be 
taken  to  date  from  a  few  centuries  before  the  Christian  era.  The 
most  remarkable  of  these  are  sepulchral  monuments  of  their 
sovereigns  and  grandees,  great  numbers  of  which  still  exist  every- 
where except  in  the  more  northern  part  of  the  Main  Island.  They 
are  most  numerous  in  the  Gokinai,  i.e.,  the  five  provinces  near  the 
ancient  capitals  of  Nara  and  Kyoto.  The  plain  of  Kawachi,  in 
particular,  is  one  vast  cemetery  dotted  over  with  huge  tumuli. 

These  mounds  vary  in  shape  and  character.  The  largest  are 
those  known  as  misasagi,  the  Japanese  word  for  the  tombs  of 
emperors,  empresses,  and  princes  of  the  blood.  In  the  most 
ancient  times,  say  the  Japanese  antiquarians,  the  tombs  of  the 
Mikados  were  simple  mounds.  At  some  unknown  period,  how- 
ever— perhaps  a  few  centuries  before  the  Christian  era — a  highly 
specialised  form  of  tumulus  came  into  use  for  this  purpose,  and 
continued  for  several  hundreds  of  years  without  much  change.  It 
consists  of  two  mounds — one  conical,  and  the  other  of  a  triangular 
shape — merging  into  each  other  in  this  form  (S] ,  the  whole  being- 
surrounded  by  a  moat,  and  sometimes  by  two  concentric  moats 
with  a  narrow  strip  of  land  between.  The  interment  took  place  in 
the  conical  part,  the  other  probably  serving  as  a  platform  on  which 
were  performed  the  rites  in  honour  of  the  deceased.  Seen  from 
the  side,  the  appearance  is  that  of  a  saddle-hill,  the  conical  part 
being  slightly  higher  than  the  other.     There  are  sometimes  two 


$o  Archaeology. 

smaller  mounds  at  the  base  of  the  larger  ones,  filling  up  the  angles 
where  they  meet.  The  slope  of  the  tumulus  is  not  regular,  but  is 
broken  up  by  terraces,  on  which  are  placed  in  rows,  at  intervals  of 
a  few  inches,  curious  cylinders  coarsely  made  of  baked  clay  shaped 
in  a  mould,  and  measuring  from  one  to  two  feet  in  height  and 
from  six  to  fourteen  inches  in  diameter.  They  are  buried  in  the 
earth,  their  upper  rims  being  just  level  with  the  surface.  The 
number  of  these  cylinders  is  enormous,  amounting  in  the  case  of 
some  of  the  larger  misasagi  to  many  thousands.  Their  object  can 
scarcely  yet  be  said  to  have  been  definitely  ascertained.  One 
purpose  was  no  doubt  to  prevent  the  earth  of  the  mounds  from 
being  washed  away  by  rain ;  but  the  Japanese  tradition  which 
connects  them  with  an  ancient  custom  of  burying  alive  a  number 
of  the  servants  of  a  deceased  monarch  in  a  ring  around  his  grave, 
is  probably  founded  in  fact. 

It  is  related  that  in  the  28th  year  of  the  Emperor  Suinin  (B.C.  2 
of  the  popular  chronology),  his  brother  died.  All  his  attendants 
were  buried  alive  round  the  tumulus  in  a  standing  position.  For 
many  days  they  died  not,  but  day  and  night  wept  and  cried.  The 
Mikado,  hearing  the  sound  of  their  weeping,  was  sad  and  sorry  in 
his  heart,  and  commanded  all  his  ministers  to  devise  some  plan  by 
which  this  custom,  ancient  though  it  was,  should  be  discontinued 
for  the  future.  Accordingly,  when  the  Mikado  himself  died  in 
A.D.  3,  workers  in  clay  were  sent  for  to  the  province  of  Izumo,  and 
made  images  of  men,  horses,  and  various  other  things,  which  were 
set  up  around  the  grave  instead  of  living  beings.  This  precedent 
was  followed  in  later  times,  and  some  of  the  figures  still  exist.  The 
Ueno  Museum  in  Tokyo  contains  several  specimens,  and  one 
(of  a  man)  has  been  secured  for  the  Gowland  collection  now  in  the 
British  Museum.  The  cylinders  above  described  are  similar  to 
these  images  in  material  and  workmanship,  and  it  is  probable  that 
they  served  as  pedestals  on  which  the  images  were  placed,  though 
in  view  of  their  immense  number,  this  can  hardly  have  been  their 
only  use. 

The  misasagi  vary  greatly  in  size.     One  in  Kozuke,  measured  by 


Archaeology.  3 1 

Sir  Ernest  Satow,  was  36  feet  in  height,  372  feet  long,  and  284  feet 
broad.  But  this  is  a  comparatively  small  one.  That  of  the 
Emperor  Ojin  near  Nara  measures  2,312  yards  round  the  outer 
moat,  and  is  some  60  feet  in  height.  The  Emperor  Nintoku's 
tomb  near  Sakai  is  still  larger,  and  there  is  a  tumulus,  in  Kawachi, 
known  as  the  O-isuka,  or  "  Big  Mound,"  on  the  flank  of  which  a 
good-sized  village  has  been  built. 

The  misasagi  are  at  present  generally  clothed  with  trees,  and 
form  a  favourite  nesting  resort  for  the  paddy-bird  or  white  egret, 
and  other  birds.  Of  late  years  these  interesting  relics  have  been 
well-cared  for  by  the  Government,  at  least  those  which  are  re- 
cognised as  Imperial  tombs.  They  have  been  fenced  round,  and 
provided  with  honorary  gateways.  Embassies  are  despatched  once 
or  twice  a  year  to  worship  at  them.  In  former  times,  however, 
they  were  much  neglected,  and  there  is  reason  to  fear  that  few  have 
escaped  desecration.  A  road  has  been  run  through  the  misasagi 
of  the  Emperor  Yuryaku,  and  on  other  double  mounds  promising 
cabbage  plantations  have  been  seen  growing. 

In  some,  perhaps  in  most,  cases  the  misasagi  contains  a  large 
vault  built  of  great  unhewn  stones  without  mortar.  The  walls  of 
the  vault  converge  gradually  towards  the  top,  which  is  then  roofed 
in  by  enormous  slabs  of  stone  weighing  many  tons  each.  The 
entrance  was  by  means  of  a  long,  low  gallery,  roofed  with  similar 
stones,  and  so  constructed  that  its  right  wall  is  in  a  line  with  the 
right  wall  of  the  vault.  During  the  later  period  of  mound- 
building,  the  entrance  to  this  gallery  always  faced  south, — a 
practice  which  had  its  origin  in  the  Chinese  notion  that  the  north 
is  the  most  honourable  quarter,  and  that  the  deceased  should 
therefore  occupy  that  position  in  relation  to  the  worshippers. 
Sarcophagi  of  stone  and  pottery  have  been  found  in  some  of  the 
misasagi. 

Nobles  and  high  officials  were  buried  in  simple  conical  mounds 
ten  or  fifteen  feet  high,  containing  a  vault  similar  to  those  above 
described,  but  of  smaller  dimensions.  An  average  specimen  of  a 
group  of  thirty  or  forty  situated  near  the  western  shore  of  Lake 


32  Archaeology. 

Biwa,  a  few  miles  north  of  the  town  of  Otsu,  measured  as  follows  : — 


CHAMBER. 

Length — from  n  feet  8  inches  below  to  10  feet  above. 
Breadth — from  6  feet  6  inches  below  to  4  feet  at  top. 
Height — 8  feet  9  inches. 

GALLERY. 

Breadth — 2  feet  9  inches. 

Height — 4  feet. 

Length — 10  feet. 

The  roof  of  the  chamber  consisted  in  this  instance  of  three  large 
stones. 

These  tombs  sometimes  stand  singly,  but  are  more  commonly 
found  in  groups  of  ten  to  forty  or  fifty.  The  lower  slope  of  a  hill, 
just  where  it  touches  the  plain,  is  a  favourite  position  for  them. 
When  the  earth  of  these  mounds  has  been  washed  away,  so  that 
the  massive  blocks  of  stone  which  form  the  roof  protrude  from  the 
surface,  they  present  a  striking  resemblance  to  the  dolmens  of 
Europe,  and  more  especially  to  those  megalithic  monuments 
known  in  France  as  allies  couverles.  The  peasantry  call  them 
iwa-ya,  or  "  rock-houses,"  and  imagine  that  they  were  the  dwellings 
of  their  remote  ancestors,  or  that  they  were  used  as  refuges  from  a 
fiery  rain  which  fell  in  ancient  times.  They  are  little  cared  for  by 
the  Japanese,  and  in  too  many  cases  have  been  used  as  quarries 
for  the  building  materials  which  they  contain.  Nearly  all  have 
been  rifled  at  some  period  or  other. 

During  the  eighth  century  of  the  Christian  era,  this  style  of 
sepulture  fell  gradually  into  disuse  under  the  influence  of  Buddhist 
ideas.  In  the  eyes  of  a  Buddhist,  vast  costly  structures  were  not 
only  a  burden  to  the  people,  but  were  objectionable  as  tending  to 
foster  false  notions  of  the  real  value  of  these  mortal  frames  of  ours. 
Many  of  the  Mikados  were  earnest  devotees  of  Buddhism.  Begin- 
ning with  Gemmyo  Tenno  in  A.D.  715,  a  long  series  of  them 
abdicated  the  throne  in  order  to  spend  the  remainder  of  their  lives 


Archaeology.  33 

in  pious  seclusion.  In  several  cases,  by  their  express  desire,  no 
misasagi  were  erected  over  their  remains,  and  some  even  directed 
that  their  bodies  should  be  cremated  and  the  ashes  scattered  to  the 
winds. 

It  is  remarkable  that  no  inscriptions  should  be  found  in  con- 
nection with  the  tombs  of  this  period,  although  the  Japanese 
became  acquainted  with  Chinese  writing  early  in  the  fifth  century, 
if  not  sooner.  The  tombs  have,  however,  yielded  a  large  quantity 
of  objects  of  antiquarian  interest.  Among  these,  pottery  perhaps 
stands  first.  The  clay  cylinders,  the  figures  of  men  and  horses, 
and  earthenware  sarcophagi  have  been  already  noticed ;  but  numer- 
ous vases,  pots,  dishes,  and  other  utensils  have  also  been  found. 
They  are  usually  turned  on  a  wheel ;  but  there  is  no  trace  of  glaze 
or  colouring,  and  they  are  of  rather  rude  workmanship.  The 
ornamentation  is  simple,  consisting  of  wavy  lines  round  the  vessel, 
— similar  to  those  seen  round  Egyptian  water-bottles  at  the  present 
day, — of  circular  grooves,  or  of  parallel  scorings,  all  made  with  a 
wooden  comb  or  pointed  stick  when  the  clay  was  in  a  wet  state. 
Many  have  "  mat-markings/'  and  the  interior  of  the  larger  articles 
is  usually  adorned  with  a  pattern  known  as  the  "Korean  wheel." 
This  consists  of  discs  containing  a  number  of  concentric  circles 
overlapping  one  another.  They  were  produced  by  a  wooden 
stamp  one  or  two  inches  in  diameter,  and  the  object  may  have 
been  to  render  the  clay  less  liable  to  crack  in  baking.  A  stamp  of 
this  kind  is  actually  used  in  Korea  at  the  present  time.  Fragments 
of  pottery  with  this  mark  may  always  be  found  in  the  vicinity 
of  a  Japanese  dolmen.  There  are  vases  of  a  more  pretentious 
character,  having  groups  of  rude  figures  round  the  upper  part,  and 
pedestals  pierced  with  curious  triangular  openings.  These  were 
probably  sacrificial  vases.  The  Japanese  pottery  of  this  period  is 
identical  in  shape,  pattern,  and  material  with  the  more  ancient 
earthenware  of  Korea,  from  which  country  there  is  no  doubt  that 
the  ceramic  art  of  Japan  was  derived.  Representative  examples  of 
it  may  be  seen  in  the  Gowland  collection  in  the  British  Museum ; 
the  Ueno  Museum   in  Tokyo  is  rich   in  fine  specimens.     Other 


34  Architecture. 

antiquarian  objects  of  this  period  are  iron  swords  (straight  and 
one-edged),  iron  spear-heads,  articles  of  armour  often  adorned  with 
gold  and  silver,  mirrors  of  a  mixed  metal,  horse-gear, — such  as 
stirrups,  bits,  etc., — ornaments,  among  which  are  thick  rings  of 
gold,  silver,  or  bronze,  besides  glass  beads,  etc.  All  these  are  of 
good  workmanship,  and  it  is  probable  that  some  of  the  articles  are 
of  Chinese  origin. 

The  maga-lama,  or  comma-shaped  ornaments  made  of  stone, 
probably  belong  to  a  very  early  period  of  Japanese  history.  They 
formed  part,  no  doubt,  of  the  necklaces  of  polished  stone  and  clay 
beads  which  we  know  to  have  been  worn  by  Japanese  sovereigns 
and  nobles  in  ancient  times. 

Books  recommended.  Dolmens  and  Burial  Mounds  in  Japan,  by  Wm.  Gowland, 
published  by  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  (London).  See  also  papers  by  Romyn  Hitchcock, 
published  by  the  Smithsonian  Institution,  and  others  by  Prof.  E.  Morse  (in  the  Memoirs 
of  the  Science  Department  of  the  University  of  Tokyo)  and  by  Sir  Ernest  Satow  (in  the 
"  Asiatic  Transactions'1'').  Aston's  annotated  translation  of  the  Nihongi,  published  by  the 
Japan  Society  in  1896,  is  a  mine  of  information  on  prehistoric  and  proio-historic  Japan.  The 
greatest  native  archaeologist  of  the  old  school  was  Ninagawa,  who  died  several  years 
ago.  Of  living  archaeologists  who  have  formed  themselves  on  European  critical  methods, 
the  most  eminent  is  Professor  S.  Tsuboi. 

Architecture.  The  Japanese  genius  touches  perfection  in 
small  things.  No  other  nation  ever  understood  half  so  well  how  to 
make  a  cup,  a  tray,  even  a  kettle — a  thing  of  beauty,  how  to  trans- 
form a  little  knob  of  ivory  into  a  microcosm  of  quaint  humour, 
how  to  express  a  fugitive  thought  in  half-a-dozen  dashes  of  the 
pencil.  The  massive,  the  spacious,  the  grand,  is  less  congenial  to 
their  mental  attitude.  Hence  they  achieve  less  success  in  architec- 
ture than  in  the  other  arts.  The  prospect  of  a  Japanese  city  from 
a  height  is  monotonous.  Not  a  tower,  not  a  dome,  not  a  minaret, 
nothing  aspiring  heavenward,  save  in  rare  cases  a  painted  pagoda 
half-hidden  amidst  the  trees  which  it  barely  tops, — nothing  but 
long,  low  lines  of  thatch  and  tiles,  even  the  Buddhist  temple  roofs 
being  but  moderately  raised  above  the  rest,  and  even  their  curves 
being  only  quaint  and  graceful,  nowise  imposing.  It  was  a  true 
instinct  that  led  Professor  Morse  to  give  to  his  charming  mono- 


Architecture.  35 

graph  on  Japanese  architecture  the  title  of  fapanese  Homes,  the 
interest  of  Japanese  buildings  lying  less  in  the  buildings  themselves 
than  in  the  neat  domestic  ways  of  their  denizens,  and  in  the 
delightful  little  bits  of  ornamentation  that  meet  one  at  every  turn, — 
the  elaborate  metal  fastenings,  the  carved  friezes  {r  amnio),  the 
screens  both  sliding  and  folding,  the  curiously  ornamental  tiles, 
the  dainty  gardens  with  their  dwarfed  trees.  What  is  true  of  the 
dwelling-houses  is  true  of  the  temples  also.  Nikko  and  Shiba  are 
glorious,  not  as  architecture  (in  the  sense  in  which  we  Europeans, 
the  inheritors  of  the  Parthenon,  of  the  Doges'  Palace,  and  of 
Salisbury  Cathedral,  understand  the  word  architecture),  but  for  the 
elaborate  geometrical  figures,  the  bright  flowers  and  birds  and 
fabulous  beasts,  with  which  the  sculptor  and  painter  of  wood  has 
so  lavishly  adorned  them. 

The  ordinary  Japanese  house  is  a  light  frame-work  structure, 
whose  thatched,  shingled,  or  tiled  roof,  very  heavy  in  proportion, 
is  supported  on  stones  with  slightly  hollowed  tops  resting  on  the 
surface  of  the  soil.  There  is  no  foundation,  as  that  word  is  under- 
stood by  our  architects.  The  house  stands  on  the  ground,  not 
partly  in  it.  Singularity  number  two  :  there  are  no  walls — at  least 
no  continuous  walls.  The  side  of  the  house,  composed  at  night 
of  wooden  sliding  doors  called  amado,  is  stowed  away  in  boxes 
during  the  day-time.  In  summer,  everything  is  thus  open  to  the 
outside,  air.  In  winter,  semi-transparent  paper  slides,  called  sho/i, 
replace  the  wooden  sliding  doors  during  the  day-time.  The 
rooms  are  divided  from  each  other  by  opaque  paper  screens,  called 
fusuma  or  karakami,  which  run  in  grooves  at  the  top  and  bottom. 
By  taking  out  these  sliding  screens,  several  rooms  can  be  turned 
into  one.  The  floor  of  all  the  living-rooms  is  covered  with  thick 
mats,  made  of  rushes  and  perfectly  fitted  together,  so  as  to  leave  no 
interstices.  As  these  mats  are  always  of  the  same  size, — six  feet  by 
three, — it  is  usual  to  compute  the  area  of  a  room  by  the  number 
of  its  mats.  Thus  you  speak  of  a  six  mat  room,  a  ten  mat  room, 
etc.  In  the  dwellings  of  the  middle  classes,  rooms  of  eight,  of  six, 
and   of  four  and  a  half  mats  are  those  oftenest  met  with.     The 


36  Architecture. 

kitchen  and  passages  are  not  matted,  but  have  a  wooden  floor, 
which  is  kept  brightly  polished.  But  the  passages  are  few  in  a 
Japanese  house,  each  room  opening  as  a  rule  into  the  others  on 
either  side. 

When  a  house  has  a  second  storey,  this  generally  covers  but  a 
portion  of  the  ground  floor.  The  steps  leading  up  to  it  resemble  a 
ladder  rather  than  a  staircase.  The  best  rooms  in  a  Japanese 
house  are  almost  invariably  at  the  back,  where  also  is  the  garden  ; 
and  they  face  south,  so  as  to  escape  the  northern  blast  in  winter 
and  to  get  the  benefit  of  the  breeze  in  summer,  which  then  always 
blows  from  the  south.  They  generally  have  a  recess  or  alcove, 
ornamented  with  a  painted  or  written  scroll  {kakemono)  and  a  vase 
of  flowers.  Furniture  is  conspicuous  by  its  absence.  There  are 
no  tables,  no  chairs,  no  wash-hand-stands,  no  pianoforte, — none 
of  all  those  thousand  and  one  things  which  we  cannot  do  without. 
The  necessity  for  bedsteads  is  obviated  by  quilts,  which  are 
brought  in  at  night  and  laid  down  wherever  may  happen  to  be 
most  convenient.  No  mahogany  dining-table  is  required  in  a 
family  where  each  member  is  served  separately  on  a  little  lacquer 
tray.  Cupboards  are,  for  the  most  part,  openings  in  the  wall, 
screened  in  by  small  paper  slides, — not  separate,  movable  entities. 
Whatever  treasures  the  family  may  possess  are  mostly  stowed  in 
an  adjacent  building,  known  in  the  local  English  dialect  as  a 
"  godown,"  that  is,  a  fire-proof  storehouse  with  walls  of  mud  or 
clay.* 

These  details  will  probably  suggest  a  very  uncomfortable  sum 
total ;  and  Japanese  houses  are  supremely  uncomfortable  to  ninety- 
nine  Europeans  out  of  a  hundred.  Nothing  to  sit  on,  nothing  but 
a  brazier  to  warm  oneself  by,  and  yet  abundant  danger  of  fire,  no 
solidity,  no  privacy,  the  deafening  clatter  twice  daily  of  the  opening 
and  shutting  of  the  outer  wooden  slides,  draughts  insidiously 
pouring   in    through    innumerable  chinks   and   crannies,    darkness 

*  "  Godown  "  (pronounced  go-dawn,  not  god-own)  seems  to  be  a  Telugu  or  Tamil  word, 
which  passed  first  into  Malay,  and  was  adopted  thence  into  Asiatic  English.  See  that 
most  delightful  of  dictionaries,  Yule's  Hobson-Jobson. 


Architecture. 


37 


whenever  heavy  rain  makes  it  necessary  to  shut  up  one  or  more 
sides  of  the  house, — to  these  and  various  other  enormities  Japanese 
houses  must  plead  guilty.  Two  things,  chiefly,  may  be  said  on 
the  other  side.  First,  these  houses  are  cheap, — an  essential  point 
in  a  poor  country.  Secondly,  the  people  who  live  in  them  do  not 
share  our  European  ideas  with  regard  to  comfort  and  discomfort. 
They  do  not  miss  fire-places  or  stoves,  never  having  realised  the 
possibility  of  such  elaborate  arrangements  for  heating.  They  do 
not  mind  draughts,  having  been  inured  to  them  from  infancy.  In 
fact  an  elderly  diplomat,  who,  during  his  sojourn  in  a  Japanese 
hotel,  spent  well-nigh  his  whole  time  in  the  vain  endeavour  to 
keep  doors  shut  and  chinks  patched  up,  used  to  exclaim  to  us, 
"Mais  les  Japonais  adorent  les  couranis  d'air/"  Furthermore, 
the  physicians  who  have  studied  Japanese  dwelling-houses  from 
the  point  of  view  of  hygiene,  give  them  a  clean  bill  of  health. 

Leaving  this  portion  of  the  subject,  which  is  a  matter  of  taste, 
not  of  argument,  let  us  enquire  into  the  origin  of  Japanese  architec- 
ture, which  is  a  matter  of  research.  Its  origin  is  twofold.  The 
Japanese  Buddhist  temple  comes  from  India,  being  a  modification 
of  the  Indian  original.  The  other  Japanese  styles  are  of  native 
growth.  Shinto  temples,  Imperial  palaces,  and  commoners'  dwell- 
ing-houses are  alike  developments  of  the  simple  hut  of  prehistoric 
times.  Persons  interested  in  archaeological  research  may  like  to 
hear  what  Sir  Ernest  Satow  has  to  say  on  the  little-known  subject 
of  primeval  Japanese  architecture.     He  writes  as  follows*  : — 

"  Japanese  antiquarians  tell  us  that  in  early  times,  before 
carpenter's  tools  had  been  invented,  the  dwellings  of  the  people 
who  inhabited  these  islands  were  constructed  of  young  trees  with 
the  bark  on,  fastened  together  with  ropes  made  of  the  rush  suge 
(Scirpus  mari/imus),  or  perhaps  with  the  tough  shoots  of  wistaria 
{fuji),  and  thatched  with  the  grass  called  kaya.  In  modern 
buildings  the  uprights  of  a  house  stand  upon  large  stones  laid  on 


*  We  quote  from  a  paper  entitled   The  Shinto  Temples  of  he,  printed  in  Vol.  II.  of  the 
Asiatic  Transactions." 


38  Architecture. 

the  surface  of  the  earth  ;  but  this  precaution  against  decay  had  not 
occurred  to  the  ancients,  who  planted  the  uprights  in  holes  dug  in 
the  ground. 

"  The  ground  plan  of  the  hut  was  oblong,  with  four  corner  up- 
rights, and  one  in  the  middle  of  each  of  the  four  sides,  those  in 
the  sides  which  formed  the  ends  being  long  enough  to  support 
the  ridge-pole.  Other  trees  were  fastened  horizontally  from  corner 
to  corner,  one  set  near  the  ground,  one  near  the  top,  and  one  *set 
on  the  top,  the  latter  of  which  formed  what  we  call  the  wall-plates. 
Two  large  rafters,  whose  upper  ends  crossed  each  other,  were  laid 
from  the  wall-plates  to  the  heads  of  the  taller  uprights.  The  ridge- 
pole rested  in  the  fork  formed  by  the  upper  ends  of  the  rafters 
crossing  each  other.  Horizontal  poles  were  then  laid  along  each 
slope  of  the  roof,  one  pair  being  fastened  close  up  to  the  exterior 
angles  of  the  fork.  The  rafters  were  slender  poles  or  bamboos 
passed  over  the  ridge-pole  and  fastened  down  on  each  end  to  the 
wall-plates.  Next  followed  the  process  of  putting  on  the  thatch. 
In  order  to  keep  this  in  its  place  two  trees  were  laid  along  the 
top,  resting  in  the  forks,  and  across  these  two  trees  were  placed 
short  logs  at  equal  distances,  which,  being  fastened  to  the  poles  in 
the  exterior  angle  of  the  forks  by  ropes  passed  through  the  thatch, 
bound  the  ridge  of  the  roof  firmly  together. 

"The  walls  and  doors  were  constructed  of  rough  matting.  It  is 
evident  that  some  tool  must  have  been  used  to  cut  the  trees  to  the 
required  length,  and  for  this  purpose  a  sharpened  stone  was 
probably  employed.  Such  stone  implements  have  been  found 
imbedded  in  the  earth  in  various  parts  of  Japan  in  company  with 
stone  arrow-heads  and  clubs.  Specimens  of  the  ancient  style  of 
building  may  even  yet  be  seen  in  remote  parts  of  the  country,  not 
perhaps  so  much  in  the  habitations  of  the  peasantry,  as  in  sheds 
erected  to  serve  a  temporary  purpose. 

"  The  architecture  of  the  Shinto  temples  is  derived  from  the 
primeval  hut,  with  more  or  less  modification  in  proportion  to  the 
influence  of  Buddhism  in  each  particular  case.  Those  of  the 
purest  style  retain  the  thatched  roof,  others  are  covered  with  the 


Architecture.  39 

thick  shingling  called  hiwada-buki,  while  others  have  tiled  and  even 
coppered  roofs.  The  projecting  ends  of  the  rafters  (called  chigi) 
have  been  somewhat  lengthened,  and  carved  more  or  less  elab- 
orately. At  the  new  temple  at  Kudan-zaka,*  in  Yedo,  they  are 
shown  in  the  proper  position,  projecting  from  the  inside  of  the 
shingling ;  but  in  the  majority  of  cases  they  merely  consist  of  two 
pieces  of  wood  in  the  form  of  the  letter  X,  which  rest  on  the  ridge 
of  the  roof  like  a  pack-saddle  on  a  horse's  back, — to  make  use  of  a 
Japanese  writer's  comparison.  The  logs  which  kept  the  two  trees 
laid  on  the  ridge  in  their  place  have  taken  the  form  of  short 
cylindrical  pieces  of  timber  tapering  towards  each  extremity,  which 
have  been  compared  by  foreigners  to  cigars.  In  Japanese  they  are 
called  kalsuo-gi,  from  their  resemblance  to  the  pieces  of  dried 
bonito  sold  under  the  name  of  katsuo-bushi.  The  two  trees  laid 
along  the  roof  over  the  thatch  are  represented  by  a  single  beam, 
called  muna-osae,  or  '  roof-presser.'  Planking  has  taken  the  place 
of  the  mats  with  which  the  sides  of  the  building  were  originally 
closed,  and  the  entrance  is  closed  by  a  pair  of  folding  doors 
turning,  not  on  hinges,  but  on  what  are,  I  believe,  technically 
called  'journals.'  The  primeval  hut  had  no  flooring;  but  we  find 
that  the  shrine  has  a  wooden  floor  raised  some  feet  above  the 
ground,  which  arrangement  necessitates  a  sort  of  balcony  all 
round,  and  a  flight  of  steps  up  to  the  entrance.  The  transfor- 
mation is  completed  in  some  cases  by  the  addition  of  a  quantity 
of  ornamental  metal-work  in  brass." 

The  same  authority's  account  of  the  palaces  of  early  days  is  as 
follows  :|  "  The  palace  of  the  Japanese  sovereign  was  a  wooden 
hut,  with  its  pillars  planted  in  the  ground,  instead  of  being  erected 
upon  broad  flat  stones  as  in  modern  buildings.  The  whole  frame- 
work, consisting  of  posts,  beams,  rafters,  door-posts,  and  window- 
frames,  was  tied  together  with  cords    made  by  twisting  the  long 

*  Commonly  known  as  the  Shokonsha.     See  Murray's  Handbook/or  Japan,  7th  edition, 
p.  j  23. 

t  See  an  elaborate  paper  on   Ancient  Japanese    Rituals,    in    Vol.    XI.    Part    II.    of  the 
"Asiatic  Transactions." 


40  Architecture. 

fibrous  stems  of  climbing  plants,  such  as  Pueraria  thutibergiana 
{kuzu)  and  Wistaria  sinensis  (fuji).  The  floor  must  have  been 
low  down,  so  that  the  occupants  of  the  building,  as  they  squatted 
or  lay  on  their  mats,  were  exposed  to  the  stealthy  attacks  of 
venomous  snakes,  which  were  probably  far  more  numerous  in  the 
earliest  ages,  when  the  country  was  for  the  most  part  uncultivated, 

than  at  the  present  day There  seems  some  reason  to  think 

that  the  yuka,  here  translated  floor,  was  originally  nothing  but  a 
couch  which  ran  round  the  sides  of  the  hut,  the  rest  of  the  space 
being  simply  a  mud-floor,  and  that  the  size  of  the  couch  was 
gradually  increased  until  it  occupied  the  whole  interior.  The 
rafters  projected  upward  beyond  the  ridge-pole,  crossing  each 
other,  as  is  seen  in  the  roofs  of  modern  Shinto  temples,  whether 
their  architecture  be  in  conformity  with  early  traditions  (in  which 
case  all  the  rafters  are  so  crossed)  or  modified  in  accordance  with 
more  advanced  principles  of  construction,  and  the  crossed  rafters 
retained  only  as  ornaments  at  the  two  ends  of  the  ridge.  The  roof 
was  thatched,  and  perhaps  had  a  gable  at  each  end,  with  a  hole  to 
allow  the  smoke  of  the  wood-fire  to  escape,  so  that  it  was  possible 
for  birds  flying  in  and  perching  on  the  beams  overhead,  to  defile 
the  food,  or  the  fire  with  which  it  was  cooked." 

To  this  description  of  Sir  Ernest  Satow's,  it  should  be  added 
that  fences  were  in  use,  and  that  the  wooden  doors,  sometimes 
fastened  by  means  of  hooks,  resembled  those  with  which  we  are 
familiar  in  Europe  rather  than  the  sliding,  screen-like  doors  of 
modern  Japan.  The  windows  seem  to  have  been  mere  holes. 
Rush-matting  and  rugs  consisting  of  skins  were  occasionally 
brought  in  to  sit  upon,  and  we  even  hear  once  or  twice  of  "silk 
rugs  "  being  used  for  the  same  purpose  by  the  noble  and  wealthy. 

Since  1870,  the  Japanese  have  begun  to  exchange  their  own 
methods  of  building  for  what  is  locally  termed  "  foreign  style," 
doubtless,  as  a  former  resident*  has  wittily  observed,  because 
foreign  to  all  known  styles  of  architecture.     This  "  foreign  style  " 

*  Mr.  E.  G.   Holtham,  in  his  Eight  Years  in  ya/au. 


Armour.  4 1 

is  indeed  not  one,  but  multiform.  There  is  the  rabbit-warren 
style,  exemplified  in  the  streets  at  the  back  of  the  Ginza  in  Tokyo. 
There  is  the  wooden  shanty  or  bathing-machine  style,  of  which 
the  capital  offers  a  wealth  of  examples.  There  is  the  cruet-stand 
style,  so  strikingly  exemplified  in  the  new  Tokyo  Prefecture. 
The  Brobdingnagian  pigeon-house  style  is  represented  here  and 
there  both  in  wood  and  stone.  Its  chief  feature  is  having  no 
windows, — at  least,  none  to  speak  of.  After  all,  these  things  are 
Japan's  misfortune,  not  her  fault.  She  discovered  Europe,  archi- 
tecturally speaking,  at  the  wrong  moment.  We  cannot  with  any 
grace  blame  a  nation  whom  we  have  ourselves  misled.  If  Japan's 
contemporary  efforts  in  architecture  are  worse  even  than  ours,  it  is 
chiefly  because  her  people  have  less  money  to  dispose  of.  More- 
over, Nature  herself  confines  them  to  the  flat  and  the  little  : — three 
storeys  are  a  dangerous  experiment  in  this  earthquake-shaken 
land. 

Books  recommended.  Japanese  Homes,  by  Prof.  E.  S.  Morse. — Domestic  Architec- 
ture in  Japan,  and  Further  Notes  on  Japanese  Architecture,  by  Josiah  Conder, 
F.R.I.B.A.,  printed  in  the  "Transactions  of  the  Royal  Institute  of  British  Architects," 
1886-7.  Both  the  above  authors  have  illustrated  their  works  profusely,  Prof.  Morse  giving 
representations,  not  only  of  architectural  details  proper,  but  of  all  the  fittings  and 
domestic  articles  of  a  middle-class  Japanese  household.  Mr.  Conder  gives  drawings  of 
temples  and  palaces. — The  Feudal  Mansions  of  Yedo,  by  T.  R.  H.  McClatchie,  in  Vol. 
VII.  Part  III.  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions."  This  is  a  full  description  of  [the  ancient 
yashiki,  or  Daimyos'  residences. — For  what  the  doctors  have  to  say  about  Japanese  houses 
from  a  sanitary  point  of  view,  see  Drs.  Seymour  and  Baelz,  in  Vol.  XVII.  Part  II.,  pp. 
17-21.  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions." —  There  are  other  papers  by  Messrs  McClatchie, 
Brunton,  and  Cawley,  more  or  less  concerned  with  Japanese  architecture,  scattered 
through  the  publications  of  the  same  Society. 

Armour.  Japanese  armour  might  serve  as  a  text  for  those 
authors  who  love  to  descant  on  the  unchanging  character  of  the 
East.  Our  own  Middle  Ages  witnessed  revolutions  in  the  style 
of  armour  as  complete  as  any  that  have  taken  place  in  the  Paris 
fashions  during  the  last  three  hundred  years.  In  Japan,  on 
the  contrary,  from  the  beginning  of  true  feudalism  intthe  twelfth 
century  down  to  its  extinction  in  1871,  there  was  scarcely  any 
change.  The  older  specimens  are  rather  the  better,  rather  the 
more  complete ;   the  newer  are  often  rather  heavier,  owing  to  the 


42  Army. 

use  of  a  greater  number  of  plates  and  scales ;  that  is  all.  It  is 
true  that  in  quite  old  times  Japanese  armour  was  still  imperfect. 
Cloth  and  the  hides  of  animals  seem  to  have  been  the  materials 
then  employed.  But  metal  armour  had  already  established  itself 
in  general  use  by  the  eighth  century  of  our  era.  The  weapons, 
too,  then  known  were  the  same  as  a  millennium  later,  with  the 
exception  of  fire-arms,  which  began  to  creep  in  during  the 
sixteenth  century  in  the  wake  of  intercourse  with  the  early 
Portuguese  adventurers.*  Those  who  are  interested  in  the  subject, 
either  theoretically  or  as  purchasers  of  suits  of  armour  brought 
to  them  by  curio-vendors,  will  find  a  full  description  in  the  second 
part  of  Conder's  History  of  Japanese  Costume,  printed  in  Vol.  IX. 
Part  III.  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions."  They  can  there  read 
to  their  hearts'  content  about  corselets,  taces,  greaves,  mamelieres, 
brassarts,  and  many  other  deep  matters  not  known  to  the  vulgar. 

Army.  For  many  centuries — say  from  A.D.  1200  to  1867 — 
"  soldier"  and  "gentleman"  {samurai)  were  convertible  terms. 
The  Mikado  and  his  Court,  in  their  sacred  retreat  at  Kyoto, 
were,  it  is  true,  removed  by  custom  from  all  participation  in 
martial  deeds.  At  the  other  end  of  the  scale,  the  peasantry  were 
likewise  excluded.  But  for  the  intermediate  class — the  gentry 
— to  fight  was  not  only  a  duty  but  a  pleasure,  in  a  state  of 
society  where  the  security  of  feudal  possessions  depended  on  the 
strong  arm  of  the  baron  himself  and  of  his  trusty  lieges.  This 
was  the  order  of  things  down  to  A.D.  1600.  Thenceforward, 
though  peace  reigned  for  two  and  a  half  centuries  under  the 
vigorous  administration  of  the  Tokugawa  Shoguns,  all  the  military 
forms  of  an  elder  day  were  kept  up.  They  were  suddenly 
shivered  into  atoms  at  the  beginning  of  the  present  Emperor's 
reign  (A.D.  1868),  when  military  advisers  were  called  in  from 
France,  th£  continental  system  of  universal  conscription  was 
introduced,  and  uniforms  of  modern  cut  replaced  the  picturesque 

*  Compare  Article  entitled  Europeanisation. 


Army.  43 

but  cumbersome  trappings  of  the  old  Japanese  knight.  The 
Japanese  soldier's  baptism  of  fire  was  in  the  suppression  of  the 
Satsuma  rebellion  in  1877.  He  won  his  spurs  brilliantly  in  the 
China  war  of  1894-5,  compelling  the  astonished  admiration  of 
all  foreign  experts.  Specially  thorough  and  satisfactory  was  the 
organisation  of  the  commissariat  department,  which,  in  so  rigorous 
a  climate  and  so  poor  a  country,  bore  the  brunt  of  the  under- 
taking. As  the  ill-led,  unfed,  and  constitutionally  unwarlike 
Chinamen  mostly  ran  away,  Japanese  pluck  scarcely  met  with 
full  opportunity  for  showing  itself.  Nevertheless,  the  battle  of 
Pingvang  on  the  15th  September,  1894,  the  subsequent  march 
through  Manchuria,  and  the  taking  of  Port  Arthur  in  November 
of  the  same  year,  were  notable  exploits.  More  recently,  in  1900, 
the  Japanese  contingent,  by  common  consent,  bore  away  the  palm 
from  the  allied  forces  which  relieved  Peking : — they  marched 
fastest,  they  fought  best,  they  were  most  amenable  to  discipline, 
they  behaved  most  humanely  towards  the  conquered.  While  these 
pages  pass  through  the  press  in  the  summer  of  1904,  the  civilised 
warriors  of  Japan  are  again  busy  inscribing  glorious  deeds  on  the 
page  of  history,  fighting  for  the  first  time  against  a  European  foe. 
It  were  probably  no  exaggeration  to  assert  that  Japan  now  disposes 
of  the  best  army  in  the  world,  for  its  size.  This  fact — assuming  it 
to  be  a  fact — is  the  more  remarkable,  because  the  Japanese  army  is 
(if  we  may  use  the  phrase)  anonymous.  No  world-famed 
specialist — no  Frederick,  no  Napoleon — constructed  the  splendid 
machine.  It  has  been  built  up  by  men  little  heard  of  beyond  a 
narrow  circle, — a  few  French  employes,  afterwards  supplemented 
by  a  few  Germans  and  one  or  two  Italians,  and  by  natives  posses- 
sed, so  far  as  we  know,  of  neither  genius  nor  wide  experience. 
Nevertheless,  some  good  fairy  has  presided  over  all  their  acts.  Of 
course  it  must  be  allowed  that  the  material  they  have  had  to  work 
upon  is  good, — a  fair  physique  and  a  morale  beyond  all  praise, 
the  men,  though  small  and  nowise  handsome,  being  sturdy  and 
intelligently  devoted,  while  the  officers  obey  Milton's  precept 
"To  scorn  delights  and  live  laborious  days," 


44  Army. 

not  dancing  attendance  on  "society,"  or  dissipating  time  and 
energy  on  useless  games.  The  intercourse  between  officers  and 
men  is  frank  and  intimate, —a  result  of  that  seeming  contradiction 
which  we  have  discussed  elsewhere,*  the  democratic  spirit  which 
has    always  permeated  this  paternally  governed  empire. 

The  published  statistics  of  the  forces  are  believed  to  be  of  little 
value  at  any  time,  because  the  authorities  wisely  keep  precise 
details  of  the  fighting  strength  and  more  particularly  of  the  pos- 
sibilities of  mobilisation  secret.  Writing,  as  we  do,  during  the 
progress  of  a  war  which  strains  all  the  nation's  resources,  it  were 
even  more  idle  than  usual  to  attempt  to  gain  any  trustworthy 
information  on  such  matters  of  high  policy.  When  hostilities 
with  Russia  broke  out,  the  army  had  for  several  years  past  been 
undergoing  a  process  of  expansion,  to  be  completed — such  was  the 
generally  accepted  statement — in  1 9 1 1  ;  and  persons  supposed  to 
be  well-informed  held  that  on  the  completion  of  all  the  con- 
templated changes,  the  following  figures  would  be  approximately 
correct,  in  any  case  not  above  the  mark  : — 

Men  with  the  colours  (1st  to  3rd  year) ....  150,000 

First  Reserve  (4th  to  7th  year) 150,000 

Second  Reserve   (8th  to  12th  year) 150,000 

Total 450,000 

of  whom  between  8,000  and  9,000  officers,  admitted  partly  by 
competition,  partly  after  graduation  at  any  of  the  middle  schools. 
Exclusive  of  the  Imperial  Guard,  there  would  be  twelve  divisions 
with  headquarters  at  Tokyo,  Sendai,  Nagoya,  Osaka,  Hiroshima, 
Kumamoto,  Sapporo,  Hirosaki,  Kanazawa,  Fukuchiyama,  Maru- 
game,  and  Kokura.  Three  brigades — say  7,500  men — are  detach- 
ed for  service  in  Formosa.  The  cavalry  has  always  been  the 
weakest  branch  of  the  Japanese  army,  owing  to  the  absence  of  good 
horses  ;  neither  does  the  build  of  the  average  Japanese  tend  to  make 
him  a  graceful  rider.     As  at  present  fixed,  there  is  one  regiment 

*  In  the  Articles,  on  Politeness,  Nobility,  and  Education. 


Army.  45 

(three  squadrons)  of  cavalry  per  division, — eventual  total,  39 
squadrons, — besides  two  independent  brigades  (probably  12  ad- 
ditional squadrons)  in  process  of  formation,  with  headquarters  at 
Tokyo.  The  artillery  (field)  consists  of  six  batteries  per  division 
and  two  independent  artillery  brigades  (probably  12  additional 
batteries)  in  process  of  formation,  with  headquarters  at  Tokyo. 
Both  artillery  and  infantry  are  armed  with  new  weapons,— the 
former  with  the  "Arisaka  "  gun,  of  which  large  numbers  have  been 
made  in  France  and  Germany  and  some  in  Japan,  the  latter  with 
what  is  called  the  "  30th  year"  rifle.*  This  weapon  is  a  modifica- 
tion of  the  "Murata"  rifle.  Its  chief  distinctive  feature  is  that  five 
cartridges  are  loaded  simultaneously  in  a  clip. 

The  programme  here  briefly  summarised  includes  the  expendi- 
ture of  vast  sums  on  the  construction  of  forts,  barracks,  and 
arsenals.  Quantities  of  fire-arms,  ordnance,  and  ammunition  are 
manufactured  at  Tokyo  and  Osaka.  Japanese  uniforms  follow 
European  models  in  all  essentials,  except  for  the  use  of  straw 
sandals  on  active  service  instead  of  boots,  which  the  men  dislike. 

In  accordance  with  European  precedents,  the  Emperor  has 
assumed  the  supreme  command.  During  the  first  China  war,  two 
of  the  Princes,  his  kinsmen,  actually  commanded  in  the  field  ; 
others  are  now  serving  both  with  the  army  and  with  the  navy. 
This  steeping  of  the  reigning  family  in  militarism  appeared  quite 
revolutionary  at  the  period  when  it  was  first  decided  on.  As  late 
as  1887,  when  Herr  von  Mohl,  a  high  Prussian  official,  came  over 
to  help  in  the  reorganisation  of  the  Court  on  German  lines,  even  a 
step  apparently  so  natural  as  the  appointment  of  aides-de-camp  to 
His  Imperial  Majesty  met  with  stout  opposition.  For  the  old 
Court  life  of  Japan,  its  personnel,  its  ceremonial,  and  all  its  habits, 
were  based  on  those  of  China,  where,  as  is  well-known,  the  soldiery 
have  ever  been  regarded  as  a  sort  of  pariah  class, — desperadoes, 
ne'er-do-weels,    ranking  nowhere  because  leading  a  life   deemed 

o  o 

*  So  called  from  the  30th  year  of  the  Meiji  period,  that  is,  1897  (see  Article  on  Time). 
Arisaka  and  Murata  are  the  names  of  Japanese  officers,  who  invented  the  weapons  called 
after  them.     The  Murata  rifle,  now  superseded,  dates  from  1873. 


4  6  Army. 

barbarous  and  degrading,  fellows  in  fact  whom  it  would  be  desecra- 
tion to  place  near  the  person  of  the  heaven-descended  monarch. 
True,  the  Daimyos  and  Samurai,  with  the  Shogun  at  their  head, 
were,  or  had  been,  fighting  men :  —  that  was  an  element  of 
contradiction  in  the  structure  of  Japanese  society,  which  did  not 
exist  in  China.  But  though  the  Daimyos  and  Samurai  stood 
high  in  their  own  estimation  and  practically  lorded  it  over  the 
land,  they  never  rose  to  social  equality  with  the  meanest  hanger- 
on  of  the  Mikado's  Court ;  and  if  any  of  them  obtained  office 
there,  it  was  in  a  civil  capacity.  How  times  have  changed,  and 
how  swiftly  ! 

To  return  from  this  digression,  the  men  of  the  Japanese  army, 
as  already  incidentally  remarked,  are  raised  by  conscription. 
When  the  system  was  first  introduced,  numerous  exceptions  were 
allowed ;  but  now  the  application  of  the  law  is  stringent,  no 
excuse  other  than  physical  unfitness  being  entertained.  The  limit 
of  height  is  5  Japanese  ft,  that  is,  about  4  ft.  11^  in.  English; 
the  age  for  entering  is  twenty.  Every  male  between  the  ages  of 
seventeen  and  forty  belongs  ipso  facto  to  the  "  national  army " 
(Landslurm),  and  is  liable  to  be  called  out  in  case  of  emergency. 
This  "  national  army "  therefore  includes,  in  addition  to  the 
untrained  mass,  that  large  body  of  men  who  have  passed  out  of 
the  Second  Reserve  fully  trained. 

The  new-comer  may  smile  to  behold  two  or  three  Japanese 
soldiers  strolling  along  hand  in  hand,  as  if  they  were  Dresden 
shepherdesses.  What  would  he  say  during  a  campaign  to  see 
private  soldiers  on  the  march,  or  even  during  a  pause  in  actual 
battle,  take  fans  out  of  their  waiters  and  fan  themselves  ?  .  But 
after  all,  why  not?  There  is  no  effeminacy  here,  only  common 
sense, — and  coolness  in  both  meanings  of  the  term. 

It  is  extraordinary  into  what  minutiae  the  Government  has  gone 
in  its  determination  to  foster  the  military  spirit  and  raise  the  army 
to  the  highest  point  of  perfection.  Even  books  of  war-songs  have 
been  officially  composed  and  included  in  the  course  of  instruction. 
The  result,  it  must  be  confessed,  has  not  been  the  production  of 


Art.  47 

poems  of  any  very  high  order  of  merit.  What  cannot  fail  to  elicit 
our  admiration  is  the  manner  in  which  the  company  drill  imposed 
on  all  government  schools  and  adopted  in  most  private  schools 
as  well,  has  been  responded  to  by  the  scholars.  Even  little  mites 
of  boys  bear  the  flag  stoutly,  march  miles  in  the  blazing  sun, 
and  altogether  carry  themselves  so  as  to  show  that  an  enemy 
attempting  to  land  on  these  shores  must  count,  not  only  with 
every  able-bodied  man,  but  with  every  child  throughout  the 
empire. 

Art.  The  beginnings  of  Japanese  art,  as  of  almost  all  things 
Japanese  excepting  cleanliness,  can  be  traced  to  China  through 
Korea.  Even  after  Japanese  art  had  started  on  its  independent 
career,  it  refreshed  its  inspiration  from  time  to  time  by  a  careful 
study  and  imitation  of  Chinese  models ;  and  Chinese  masterpieces 
still  occupy  in  the  estimate  of  Japanese  connoisseurs  a  place 
only  hesitatingly  allowed  to  the  best  native  works.  Even  Chinese 
subjects  preponderate  in  the  classical  schools  of  Japan.  Speaking 
of  the  productions  of  the  classical  Japanese  painters,  Dr.  Anderson 
says:  "It  may  safely  be  asserted  that  not  one  in  twenty  of  the 
productions  of  these  painters,  who  to  the  present  day  are  con- 
sidered to  represent  the  true  genius  of  Japanese  art,  was  inspired 
by  the  works  of  nature  as  seen  in  their  own  beautiful  country." 
Whatever  Indian,  Persian,  or  Greek  strain  may  be  detected  in 
Japan  came  through  Korea  and  China  in  the  wake  of  Buddhism, 
and  is  accordingly  far  less  marked — if  marked  at  all  — in  genuinely 
native  Japanese  paintings  and  carvings  than  in  those  archaic 
remains  which,  though  often  inaccurately  spoken  of  as  Japanese, 
were  really  the  handiwork  of  Korean  or  Chinese  artists  or  of  their 
immediate  pupils. 

The  most  ancient  painting  now  existing  in  Japan  is  a  Buddhist 
mural  decoration  in  the  temple  of  H5ryfvji  near  Nara,  believed 
to  date  from  A.D.  607  and  to  be  the  work  of  a  Korean  priest. 
For  more  than  two  centuries  longer,  art  remained  chiefly  in 
Korean  and  Chinese  priestly  hands.      The  first  native  painter  of 


4  8  Art. 

eminence  was  Kose-no-Kanaoka,  a  Court  noble  who  nourished 
from  about  A.D.  850  to  880,  but  scarcely  any  of  whose  works 
remain.  That  the  art  of  painting,  especially  on  screens,  was 
assiduously  cultivated  at  the  Japanese  Court  during  the  ninth  and 
tenth  centuries,  is  proved  by  numerous  references  in  literature. 
But  it  was  not  till  about  the  year  1000  that  the  Yamato  Ryu  (lit. 
"Japanese  School"),  the  first  concerning  which  we  have  much 
positive  knowledge,  was  established  by  an  artist  named  Motomitsu. 
This  school  contained  within  itself  the  seed  of  most  of  the  pecu- 
liarities that  have  characterised  Japanese  art  ever  since,  with 
its  neglect  of  perspective,  its  impossible  mountains,  its  quaint 
dissection  of  roofless  interiors,  its  spirited  burlesques  of  solemn 
processions,  wherein  frogs,  insects,  or  hobgoblins  take  the  place 
of  men.  In  the  thirteenth  century  this  school  assumed  the  name 
of  the  Tosa  Ryu,  and  confined  itself  thenceforward  more  and  more 
to  classical  subjects.  Its  former  humorous  strain  had  been  caught 
as  early  as  the  twelfth  century  by  Toba  Sojo,  a  rollicking  priest, 
who,  about  A.D.  11 60,  distinguished  himself  by  drawings  coarse 
in  both  senses  of  the  word,  but  full  of  verve  and  drollery.  These 
are  the  so-called  Toba-e.  Toba  Sojo  founded  a  school.  To  found 
a  school  was  de  rigueur  in  Old  Japan,  where  originality  was  so 
little  understood  that  it  was  supposed  that  any  eminent  man's 
descendants  or  pupils,  to  the  twentieth  generation,  ought  to  be 
able  to  do  the  same  sort  of  work  as  their  ancestor  had  done. 
But  none  of  the  jovial  abbot's  followers  are  worthy  of  mention 
alongside  of  him. 

(The  fifteenth  century  witnessed  a  powerful  renaissance  of 
Chinese  influence,  and  was  the  most  glorious  period  of  Japanese 
painting.  )  It  is  a  strange  coincidence  that  Italian  painting  should 
then  also  hive  been  at  its  zenith.  But  it  is  apparently  a  coinci- 
dence only,  there  being  no  fact  to  warrant  us  in  assuming  any 
influence  of  the  one  on  the  other.  \  The  most  famous  names 
are  those  of  the  Buddhist  priests  Cho  Densu  and  Josetsu.  Cho 
Densu,  the  Fra  Angelico  of  Japan,  restricted  himself  to  religious 
subjects,   while  Josetsu  painted   landscapes,    figures,    flowers,    and 


Art. 


49 


birds.  Both  these  great  artists  died  early  in  the  century.  They 
were  succeeded  by  Mitsunobu,  the  best  painter  of  the  Tosa  School, 
and  by  Sesshii,  Shubun,  and  Kano  Masanobu,  all  of  whom  were 
founders  of  independent  schools.  \  The  first  Kano's  son,  Kano 
Motonobu,  was  more  eminent  than  his  father.  He  handed  down 
the  tradition  to  his  own  sons  and  grandsons,  and  the  Kano  school 
continues  to  be,  even  at  the  present  day,  the  chief  stronghold  of 
classicism  in  Japan.  By  "  classicism  "  we  mean  partly  a  peculiar 
technique,  partly  an  adherence  to  Chinese  methods,  models,  and 
subjects,  such  as  portraits  of  Chinese  sages  and  delineations  of 
Chinese  landscapes,  which  are  represented,  of  course,  not  from 
nature  but  at  second-hand. 

The  synthetic  power,  the  quiet  harmonious  colouring,  and  the 
free  vigorous  touch  of  these  Japanese  "old  masters"  have  justly 
excited  the  admiration  of  succeeding  generations  of  their  country- 
men. But  the  circle  of  ideas  within  which  the  Sesshus,  the 
Shubuns,  the  Kanos,  and  the  other  classical  Japanese  painters 
move,  is  too  narrow  and  peculiar  for  their  productions  to  be 
ever  likely  to  gain  much  hold  on  the  esteem  of  Europe. 
European  collectors — such  men  as  Gonse,  for  instance — have  been 
looked  down  on  by  certain  enthusiasts  in  Japan  for  the  preference 
which  they  evince  for  Hokusai  and  the  modern  Popular  School 
{Ukiyo-e  Ryu)  generally.  It  is  very  bold  of  us  to  venture  to 
express  an  opinion  on  such  a  matter;  but  we  think  that  the 
instinct  which  led  Gonse  and  others  to  Hokusai  led  them  aright, — 
that  Japanese  art  was  itself  led  to  Hokusai  by  a  legitimate  and 
most  fortunate  process  of  development,  that  it  was  led  out  of  the 
close  atmosphere  of  academical  conventionality  into  the  fresh  air 
of  heaven. 

To  say  this  is  not  necessarily  to  deny  to  the  old  masters 
superiority  of  another  order.  Cho  Densu  manifests  a  spirituality, 
Sesshu  a  genius  for  idealising  Chinese  scenes,  Kano  Tan-yu  a 
power  to  evoke  beauty  out  of  a  few  chaotic  blotches,  all  these 
and  scores  of  their  followers  a  certain  aristocratic  distinction,  to 
which  the  members    of  the    Popular    School    can    lay    no  claim. 


50  Art. 

Grant  the  ideals  of  old  Japan,  grant  Buddhism  and  Chinese 
conventions,  and  you  must  grant  the  claims  of  the  worshippers 
of  the  old  masters.  But  the  world  does  not  grant  these  things. 
Chinese  history  and  conventions,  even  Buddhism  itself,  lie  outside 
the  main  current  of  the  world's  development,  whereas  the  motives 
and  manner  of  the  Popular  School  appeal  to  all  times  and  places. 
Hence,  the  world  being  large  and  Japan  being  small,  and  influence 
on  civilisation  in  general  being  more  important  than  an  isolated 
perfection  incapable  of  transformation  or  assimilation,  there  can 
be  little  doubt  that  the  Popular  School  will  retain  its  exceptional 
place  in  European  favour. 

The  beginning  of  the  movement  may  be  traced  as  far  back  as 
the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century  in  the  person  of  Iwasa  Matahei, 
originally  a  pupil  of  the  Tosa  school  and  originator  of  the  droll 
sketches  known  as  Olsu-e.  But  a  whole  century  elapsed  before 
Hishigawa  Moronobu  began  to  devote  himself  to  the  illustration 
of  books  in  colours  and  in  popular  realistic  style.  Then,  towards 
the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century,  came  Okyo,  the  founder  of 
the  style  known  as  the  Ship  Ryu,  from  the  street  in  Kyoto  where 
the  master  resided.  Okyo  made  a  genuine  effort  to  copy  nature, 
instead  of  only  talking  about  doing  so,  as  had  been  the  habit  of  the 
older  schools.  His  astonishingly  correct  representations  of  fowls 
and  fishes,  his  pupil  Sosen's  portraitures  of  monkeys,  and  other 
striking  triumphs  of  detail  were  the  result.  But  none  of  the  mem- 
bers of  Okyo's  school  succeeded  in  disembarrassing  themselves 
altogether  from  the  immemorial  conventionalities  of  their  nation, 
when  combining  various  details  into  a  larger  composition.  Their 
naturalism,  however,  gave  an  immense  impulse  to  the  popularisa- 
tion of  art.  A  whole  cloud  of  artisan-artists  arose, — no  longer  the 
representatives  of  privileged  ancient  families,  but  commoners  who 
drew  pictures  of  the  life  around  them  to  suit  the  genuine  taste  of 
the  public  of  their  own  time  and  class.  Art  was  released  from  its 
mediaeval  Chinese  swaddling-clothes,  and  allowed  to  mix  in  the 
society  of  living  men  and  women.  And  what  a  quaint,  picturesque 
society  it  was, — that  of  the  time,  say,  between  1750  and  1850,- — the 


Art.  5 1 

"  Old  Japan "  which  all  now  know  and  appreciate,  because  the 
works  of  the  Artisan  School  have  carried  its  fame  round  the  world  ! 
The  king  of  the  artisan  workers  was  he  whom  we  call  Hokusai, 
though  his  real  original  name  was  Nakajima  Tetsujiro,  and  his 
pseudonyms  were  legion.  During  the  course  of  an  unusually  long 
life  ( 1 760-1 849),  this  man,  whose  only  possessions  were  his  brush 
and  his  palette,  poured  forth  a  continuous  stream  of  novel  and 
vigorous  creations  in  the  form  of  illustrations  to  books  and  of 
separate  coloured  sheets, — illustrations  and  sheets  which  included, 
as  Anderson  justly  says,  "  the  whole  range  of  Japanese  art-motives, 
scenes  of  history,  drama,  and  n'ovel,  incidents  in  the  daily  life 
of  his  own  class,  realisations  of  familiar  objects  of  animal  and 
vegetable  life,  wonderful  suggestions  of  the  scenery  of  his  beloved 
Yedo  and  its  surroundings,  and  a  hundred  other  inspirations  that 
would  require  a  volume  to  describe.''  Contemporary  workers  in 
the  art  of  colour-printing  were  Toyokuni,  Kunisada,  Shigenobu, 
Hiroshige,  and  others  in  plenty.  Then,  in  1853,  four  years  after 
Hokusai's  death,  came  Commodore  Perry,  the  mere  threat  of 
whose  cannon  shivered  the  old  civilisation  of  Japan  into  fragments. 
Japanese  art  perished.  Kyosai,  who  survived  till  1889,  was  its 
last  genuine  representative  in  an  uncongenial  age.  His  favourite 
subjects  had  a  certain  grim  appropriateness  : — they  were  ghosts  and 
skeletons.  Charity  compels  us  to  draw  a  veil  over  the  productions 
of  many  so-called  painters,  which,  during  the  last  two  decades, 
have  encumbered  the  shop-windows  of  Tokyo  and  disfigured  the 
walls  of  exhibitions  got  up  in  imitation  of  European  usage.  They 
seem  to  be  manufactured  by  the  gross.  If  not  worth  much,  there 
are  at  least  plenty  of  them.  Meanwhile,  here  and  there,  a  lover  of 
the  national  traditions  still  goes  on  painting  the  old  subjects  nearly 
in  the  old  way. 

Japanese  art  is  distinguished  by  directness,  facility,  and  strength 
of  line,  a  sort  of  bold  dash  due  probably  to  the  habit  of  writing  and 
drawing  from  the  elbow,  not  from  the  wrist.  This,  so  to  say, 
calligraphic  quality  is  what  gives  a  charm  to  the  merest  rough 
Japanese  sketch.     It    has    been    well  remarked  that  if  a  Japanese 


52  Art. 

artist's  work  be  carried  no  further  even  than  the  outlines,  you  will 
still  have  something  worthy  of  being  hung  on  your  wall  or  inserted 
in  your  album.  Japanese  art  disregards  the  laws  of  perspective 
and  of  light  and  shadow.  Though  sometimes  faultlessly  accurate 
in  natural  details,  it  scorns  to  be  tied  down  to  such  accuracy  as  to 
an  ever-binding  rule.  Even  in  the  same  picture — say,  one  of  a 
bird  perched  on  a  tree — you  may  have  the  bird  exact  in  every 
detail,  the  tree  a  sort  of  conventional  shorthand  symbol.  Or  you 
may  have  a  bamboo  which  is  perfection,  but  part  of  it  blurred  by 
an  artificial  atmosphere  which  no  meteorological  eccentricity  could 
place  where  the  painter  has  placed  it ;  or  else  two  sea-coasts  one 
above  another,— each  beautiful  and  poetical,  only  how  in  the  world 
could  they  have  got  into  such  a  relative  position  ?  The  Japanese 
artist  does  not  trouble  his  head  about  such  matters.  He  is,  in  his 
limited  way,  a  poet,  not  a  photographer.  Our  painters  of  the 
impressionist  school  undertake  less  to  paint  actual  scenes  than  to 
render  their  own  feelings  in  presence  of  such  scenes.  The 
Japanese  artist  goes  a  step  further :  he  paints  the  feelings  evoked 
by  the  memory  of  the  scenes,  the  feelings  when  one  is  between 
waking  and  dreaming.  He  is  altogether  an  idealist,  and  this  at 
both  ends  of  the  scale,  the  beautiful  and  the  grotesque.  Were  he 
able  to  work  on  a  large  canvas,  a  very  great  ideal  art  might  have 
been  the  result.  But  in  art,  as  in  literature,  his  nation  seems 
lacking  in  the  genius,  the  breadth  of  view,  necessary  for  making 
grand  combinations.  It  stops  at  the  small,  the  pretty,  the  isolated, 
the  vignette.  Hence  the  admirable  adaptability  of  Japanese  art  to 
decorative  purposes.  In  decoration,  too,  some  of  its  more  obvious 
defects  retire  into  the  background.  Who  would  look  on  the  side 
of  a  teapot  for  a  rigid  observance  of  perspective?  Still  less  in 
miniature  ivory  carvings  such  as  the  nelsukes,  in  the  ornaments  of 
sword-guards,  the  bas-reliefs  on  bronze  vases,  and  the  patterns  in 
pieces  (and  many  of  them  are  masterpieces)  of  embroidery.  As 
decoration  for  small  surfaces,  Japanese  art  has  already  begun  to 
conquer  the  world.  In  the  days  before  Japanese  ideas  became 
known  to  Europe,  people   there   used    to  consider  it  essential  to 


Art.  53 

have  the  patterns  on  plates,  cushions,  and  what  not,  arranged  with 
geometrical  accuracy.  If  on  the  right  hand  there  was  a  Cupid 
looking  to  the  left,  then  on  the  left  hand  there  must  be  a  Cupid 
of  exactly  the  same  size  looking  to  the  right,  and  the  chief  feature 
of  the  design  was  invariably  in  the  exact  centre.  The  Japanese 
artisan-artists  have  shown  us  that  this  mechanical  symmetry  does 
not  make  for  beauty.  They  have  taught  us  the  charm  of  irregular- 
ity ;  and  if  the  world  owe  them  but  this  one  lesson,  Japan  may 
yet  be  proud  of  what  she  has  accomplished. 

There  exists,  it  is  true,  nowadays  a  small  band  of  foreign 
enthusiasts,  who  deny  that  the  art  of  Japan  is  thus  limited  in  its 
scope,  and  decorative  rather  than  representative.  Having  studied 
it  with  greater  zeal  and  profit  than  they  have  studied  European  art, 
they  go  so  far  as  to  put  Japanese  art  on  a  level  with  that  of  Greece 
and  Italy.  These  enthusiasts  have  performed  and  are  still  per- 
forming a  useful  function.  They  are  disseminating  a  knowledge 
of  Japanese  art  abroad,  disseminating  it,  too,  in  Japan  itself,  where 
it  had  been  suffered  to  fall  into  neglect.  But  their  cult  of  Japanese 
art  partakes  of  the  nature  of  a  religious  faith,  and  like  other 
religionists,  they  are  apt  to  be  deficient  in  the  sense  of  humour. 
They  are  much  too  much  in  earnest  ever  to  smile  about  such 
serious  matters.  For  instance,  one  ardent  admirer  of  Japonism  in 
art  informs  the  public  that  the  late  painter  Kyosai  "  was  perhaps  the 
greatest  limner  of  crows  that  Japan,  nay  the  whole  world,  has  pro- 
duced." Does  this  not  remind  you  of  the  artist  in  whose  epitaph 
it  was  recorded  that  he  was  "  the  Raphael  of  cats?  "  The  Japanese 
are  undoubtedly  Raphaels  of  fishes,  and  insects,  and  flowers,  and 
bamboo-stems  swaying  in  the  breeze ;  and  they  have  given  us 
charming  fragments  of  idealised  scenery.  But  they  have  never 
succeeded  in  adequately  transferring  to  canvas  "the  human  form 
divine ;  "  they  have  never  made  grand  historical  scenes  live  again 
before  the  eyes  of  posterity  ;  they  have  never,  like  the  early  Italian 
masters,  drawn  away  men's  hearts  from  earth  to  heaven  in  an 
ecstasy  of  adoration.  In  a  word,  Japanese  art,  as  Mr.  Alfred  East 
tersely  said,  when  lecturing  on  the  subject  in  Tokyo,  is  "  great  in 
small  things,  but  small  in  great  things." 


54  Art. 

Some  of  the  anecdotes  about  Japanese  artistic  notabilities  ring 
curiously  familiar  to  Western  ears.  Thus,  there  is  the  story  of  the 
painter  Kanaoka,  whose  horses  were  so  life-like  that  at  night, 
quitting  the  screen  which  they  adorned,  they  trotted  off  into  a 
neighbouring  garden  and  munched  the  shrubs,  till  some  ingenious 
person  hit  on  the  plan  of  adding  a  rope  to  the  picture  in  order  to 
tether  these  lively  steeds.  The  cats  of  another  artist  actually 
caught  live  rats,  much  to  the  relief  of  the  priests  inhabiting  a 
temple  infested  by  those  vermin.  In  a  third  tale  it  was  painted 
rats  that  started  into  life,  and  scampered  off  when  the  rector  of  the 
temple  came  to  see  what  was  the  matter.  We  seem  to  hear  an 
echo  of  the  stories  told  of  Zeuxis  and  Parrhasios.*  It  is,  by  the 
way,  somewhat  odd  that  horses  and  cats  should  have  been  selected 
by  the  anecdote-mongers  ;  for  it  is  precisely  in  the  portraiture  of 
quadrupeds  that  Japanese  art  fails  most  conspicuously  to  express 
anatomical  truth.  Did  they  tell  us  of  painted  carp  or  gold-fish 
swimming  away,  or  of  painted  mantises  biting,  we  should  perhaps 
lend  a  more  willing  ear. 

Japanese  art-motives  form  a  fascinating  study,  which  the  visitor 
to  Japan  and  the  stay-at-home  collector  may  alike  master  little  by 
little  on  every  scroll,  coloured  print,  picture-book,  neisuke,  sword- 
hilt  that  he  bargains  for,  even  on  penny  fans  and  twopenny 
towels ;  for  in  the  Japanese  view  of  life  the  tritest  articles  of  daily 
use  should,  if  possible,  rejoice  the  eye  and  feed  the  mind.  Odds 
and  ends  are  not  combined  merely  because  they  will  look  pretty, 
as  in  the  handiwork  of  our  own  modern  decorators.  The  art- 
motives  all  have  a  rationale,  either  in  actual  reason, — as  when  the 
pine-tree  and  bamboo,  as  evergreens,  appropriately  symbolise  long 
life,  to  which  is  added  the  plum-blossom  for  beauty,  making  a 
lucky  triad  ; — or  in  idea,  such  as  that  which  constantly  associates 
the  lion  and  peony,  because  the  former  is  the  king  of  beasts,  the 
latter  the  king  of  flowers ; — or  else  in  history  or  legend,  or  in 
unalterable  convention.     Thus,    the    sparrow    and   the  bamboo  go 

*  See  Article  on  Carving  for  similar  anecdotes. 


Art.  55 

together ;  the  plum-blossom  and  the  nightingale ;  the  bamboo 
thicket  and  the  tiger ;  the  chrysanthemum  and  the  butterfly  ; 
the  snow,  moon,  and  blossoms  (highly  conventionalised)  ;  the 
flute-playing  lad  on  his  bull  Benkei  and  his  great  bronze  bell  the 
Gods  of  Luck  each  'with  his  tame  animal  or  other  appropriate 
symbol,  etc.,  etc., — all  with  a  reason.  To  mix  any  of  these 
subjects  together,  as  is  done  by  foreign  imitators,  shocks  the 
trained  eye  in  exactly  the  same  manner  as  a  solecism  in  grammar 
shocks  the  ear.  The  plain  black  crow  does  not  perch  facing  the 
sun  merely  for  the  sake  of  contrast,  though,  to  be  sure,  the  contrast 
cannot  fail  to  strike  : — he  does  so  for  the  mythological  reasons 
glanced  at  in  our  article  on  the  Japanese  Flag.  Similarly  in  a 
thousand  other  instances.  European  decorators  pursued  a  like 
course  in  the  Middle  Ages,  when,  from  the  shape  of  the  cathedral 
down  to  the  smallest  group  of  stone  figures  in  a  niche,  everything 
possessed  a  symbolical  signification,  so  that  (as  Ruskin  has  set 
forth  at  length)  Amiens  Cathedral  is  nothing  less  than  the  whole 
Bible  in  stone.  The  Japanese  are  still  in  that  enviable  stage, 
where  decoration  is  organic.  They  have  few  mere  "patterns." 
Unfortunately,  any  treatment  of  so  vast  a  subject,  to  be  satisfactory, 
would  involve  a  history  of  the  Japanese — and  even  of  the  Chinese 
— mind,  its  religious  beliefs,  the  fairy-tales  on  which  its  youth 
has  been  fed,  the  places  known  to  fame,  the  celebrated  personages 
and  picturesque  events  that  have  adorned  the  national  annals. 

(See    also    Articles    on    Architecture,    Carving,    Cloisonne, 
Metal-work,  Music,  Porcelain,  and  Wood  Engraving.) 

N.  B. — A  curious  fact,  to  which  we  have  never  seen  attention  drawn,  is  that  the  Japanese 
language  has  no  genuinely  native  word  for  "art."  To  translate  the  European  term  "fine 
art,"  there  has  been  invented  the  compound  bi-jutsu,  by  putting  together  the  two  Chinese 
characters  .1^  bi,  "beautiful,"  and  ffi  jutsu,  "craft,"  "device,"  "legerdemain;" 
and  there  are  two  or  three  other  such  compounds  which  make  an  approach  to  the 
meaning,  but  none  that  satisfactorily  cover  it.  The  Japanese  language  is  similarly  devoid 
of  any  satisfactory  word  for  "nature."  The  nearest  equivalents  are  seishitsu,  "charac- 
teristic qualities;"  bnmbutsu,  "  all  things ;  "  tennen,  "spontaneously."  This  curious 
philelogical  fact  makes  it  difficult,  with  the  best  will  and  skill  in  the  world,  to  reproduce 
most  of  our  discussions  on  art  and  nature  in  a  manner  that  shall  be  intelligible  to  those 
Japanese  who  know  no  European  language. 

The    lack    of  a    proper    word    for    "art"    is   unquestionably   a  weakness  in  Japanese. 


56  Asiatic  Society  of  Japan. 

Perhaps  the  lack  of  a  word  for  "nature"  is  a  strength.  For  does  not  the  word  "nature'' 
fn  our  Western  tongues  serve  to  conceal,  and  therefore  encourage,  confusion  of  ideas  ? 
When  we  talk,  for  instance,  of  being  "  inspired  by  nature,"  what  precise  sense  can  be 
attached  to  the  phrase?  Sometimes  "nature" — especially  with  a  big  N — is  a  kind  of 
detVic  synonym  or  euphemism  for  the  Creator,  who  becomes  "she"  for  the  nonce.  At 
other  times  it  denotes  His  creatures.  Sometimes  it  is  the  universe  minus  man  ;  some- 
times it  is  man's  impulses  as  opposed  to  his  conscious  acts.  Sometimes  it  sums  up  all 
that  is  reasonable  and  proper ;  sometimes,  as  in  theological  parlance,  the  exact  reverse. 
The  word  "nature"  is  a  Proteus.  It  stands  for  everything  in  general  and  nothing  in 
particular, — impossible  to  define,  and  serving  only  as  a  will-o'-the-wisp  to  mislead 
metaphysically  minded  persons. 

Books  Recommended.  The  foregoing  article  is  founded  chiefly  on  the  late  Dr. 
Wm.  Anderson's  great  work,  The  Pictorial  Arts  of  Japan,  which,  with  its  companion 
work,  the  Catalogue  of  Japanese  and  Chinese  Paintings  in  the  British  Museum, 
is  probably  still  the  best  authority  on  the  subject.  Brinkley's  Japan  and  China, 
Vol.  VII.  devoted  to  "  Pictorial  and  Applied  Art,"  is  also  authoritative.  Failing  these 
expensive  works  (£  8),  see  the  same  Dr.  Anderson's  earlier  History  of  Japanese  Art, 
in  Vol.  VII.  Part  IV.  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions."  The  other  chief  book  bearing  on 
the  subject  is  VArt  Japonais,  by  Louis  Gonse.  Very  important,  too,  is  Professor 
Feno'.losa's  Review  of  the  Chapter  on  Painting  in  Gonse,  printed  in  the  "Japan  Weekly 
Mail "  of  the  12th  July,  1884.  No  one  genuinely  interested  in  Japanese  art  should  fail 
to  get  hold  of  this  elaborate  critique,  wherein  is  ph  aded,  with  full  knowledge  of  the 
subject,  the  cause  of  the  Japanese  old  masters  as  against  Hokusai  and  the  modern 
Popular  School  whom  Gonse  had  championed.  A  Japanese  Collection,  by  the  well-known 
collector,  Mr.  M  Tomkinson,  is,  we  believe,  a  beautiful,  though  expensive,  work  includ- 
ing articles  by  eminent  specialists  and  a  dictionary  of  Japanese  myth  and  legend. 
Japanischer  Humor,  by  C.  Netto  and  G.  Wagener,  gives  the  explanation  of  great 
numbers  of  art-motives,  chiefly  comic,  with  delightful  illustrations.  It  is  not  easy  to 
recommend  any  of  the  briefer  and  cheaper  books  on  the  subject.  Perhaps  Huish's 
handy  little  volume,  entitled  Japan  and  its  Art,  may  be  mentioned.  See  also  Artistic 
Japan,  a  now  extinct  illustrated  journal,  edited  by  S.  Byng  and  to  be  obtained  in  volume 
form. 


Asiatic  Society  of  Japan.  This  society  was  founded  in 
1872,  for  "the  collection  of  information  and  the  investigation  of 
subjects  relating  to  Japan  or  other  Asiatic  countries."  The  two 
seats  of  the  Society  are  Tokyo  and  Yokohama.  The  entrance  fee 
is  5  yen,  and  the  yearly  fee  likewise  5  yen  to  residents,  but  3  yen  to 
non-residents.  It  is  also  optional  to  residents  to  become  life- 
members  by  paying  the  entrance  fee  and  a  lump  sum  of  50  yen  ; 
similarly,  to  non-residents  for  the  entrance  fee  and  30  yen.  Candi- 
dates are  elected  by  the  Council  of  the  Society.  Persons  desirous 
of  membership  should,  therefore,  apply  to  the  Secretary  or  to  some 
other  member  of  the  Council.     Members  receive  the  Transactions 


Bamboos.  57 

of  the  Asiatic  Society  of Japan  free,  from  the  date  of  their  election, 
and  have  the  privilege  of  purchasing  back  numbers  at  half-price. 
These  are  the  Asiatic  Transactions,  so  often  referred  to  in  the 
course  of  the  present  work.  Scarcely  a  subject  connected  with 
Japan  but  may  be  found  learnedly  discussed  in  the  pages  of  the 
Asiatic  Transactions.  A  General  Index  is  in  preparation ; 
hitherto  only  that  appended  to  Vol.  XXIII.  has  been  available. 

Besides  the  Asiatic  Society,  there  is  in  Tokyo  a  German  Society, 
entitled  Deutsche  Gesellschaftfiir  Naiur-  und  Vdlkerkunde  Oslasiens, 
the  scope  of  whose  labours  is  closely  similar,  and  whose  valuable 
Mittheilungen,  or  Gentian  Asiatic  Transactions,  as  we  have  ventured 
to  call  them  when  quoting  them,  are  strongly  recommended  to 
readers  familiar  with  the  German  language.  This  Society  was 
founded  in  1873.  The  Japan  Society,  founded  in  London  in 
1892,  has  published  many  good  papers,  especially  on  subjects 
connected  with  art. 

Bamboos.  So  extensive  is  the  part  played  by  the  bamboo  in 
Japanese  domestic  economy  that  the  question  is  rather,  what  does 
it  not  do  ?  The  larger  species  serve  as  poles  for  carrying  heavy 
weights,  drying  clothes,  punting  boats,  etc.;  as  flag-staffs,  as  water- 
pipes,  recommended  hereto  by  their  valuable  property  of  neither 
rusting  like  iron,  nor  yet  rotting  as  wood  is  apt  to  do  if  the  water 
be  from  a  hot  mineral  spring.  As  carrying  poles  and  when 
employed  for  the  framework  of  houses,  their  combination  of  light- 
ness with  strength  makes  them  peculiarly  valuable,  it  being  well- 
known  to  mechanicians  that  the  hollow  tube  is  of  all  forms  that 
which  best  unites  those  two  qualities.  A  small  species  of  bamboo 
serves  to  make  tobacco  pipe-stems  ;  one  of  intermediate  size  makes 
ornamental  doors  and  palings,  in  which  the  varying  height  of  the 
joints  gives  a  natural  pattern.  Others,  cut  into  thin  strips,  which 
are  sometimes  bound  with  silk,  form  window-blinds ;  and  the 
tender  sprouts  of  more  than  one  species  are  even  boiled  and 
eaten  as  a  vegetable.  Penholders,  broom-handles,  walking-sticks, 
umbrella-handles    and    also    the    ribs    of   umbrellas,  angling-rods, 


58  Bamboos. 

whips,  ladders,  yard-measures,  bows  and  arrows,  coolies'  hats, 
submarine  hedges  for  the  collecting  of  oysters  and  of  edible  sea- 
weed, hedges  also  round  houses,  embankments  for  rivers  (large 
stones  being  placed  for  this  purpose  in  bamboo  crates),  clapboard- 
ing,  ornamental  floors  for  verandahs  and  tea-rooms,  travelling 
trunks,  torches,  chopsticks,  spits,  bird-cages,  fish-traps,  flutes, 
trumpets,  picture-frames,  cask  hoops,  even  nails  (for  being  non- 
conductors of  heat  and  non-corrosible,  bamboo  nails  do  better  for 
certain  purposes  than  metal  ones),  ladles,  tea-scoops,  sieves, 
shutters,  fans,  even  flower-vases,  special  apparatus  of  various  sorts 
for  use  in  the  arts,  toys  and  ornaments  of  innumerable  kinds,  are 
all  manufactured  out  of  bamboo.  Nothing  makes  a  better  tube  for 
keeping  unmounted  photographs  from  the  damp  than  does  a 
section  of  bamboo.  The  dried  sheath  of  the  culm  of  the  young 
bamboo  serves  for  wrapping  up  such  things  as  rice  sandwiches, 
meat,  and  cakes,  which  are  apt  to  stain  their  receptacles  ;  also  for 
the  manufacture  of  sandals  and  the  soles  of  wooden  clo^s.  The 
leaves  of  the  bamboo  grass  (which  is  a  sort  of  bamboo)  provide  a 
clean,  cool  surface  on  which  to  lay  fish  in  a  basket,  the  basket 
itself  being  often  of  bamboo  split  and  twisted.  Such  twisted  split 
bamboos  also  serve  to  make  strong  hawsers,  which  are  employed 
to  swing  ferry-boats,  and  even  for  the  construction  of  bridges  in 
certain  rural  districts,  as  no  other  material  is  so  cheap  and  so  easy 
to  handle.  One  kind  at  least  can,  by  a  process  of  boiling,  be 
flattened  out  into  trays  which  are  much  prized.  Another  species, 
which  is  non-hollow,  is  cut  into  seals.  The  above  list  could 
easily  be  extended.  But  it  may  suffice  to  show  that  Japanese  life 
without  the  bamboo  is  almost  as  hard  to  picture  to  oneself  as 
pastry  without  butter,  landscape  without  light,  or  a  Britisher  with- 
out a  grievance. 

The  numerous  plants  which  common  parlance  lumps  together 
under  the  general  name  of  "  bamboos "  really  form  three  distinct 
genera,  known  to  botanists  as  Bambusa,  Arundinaria,  and  Phyllos- 
lachys,  each  including  many  species.  The  number  of  species 
of  bamboo  found  growing  in  Japan  at  the  present  day  is  stated  by 


Bamboos.  59 

Prof.  Matsumura,  of  the  Tokyo  University  and  Botanical  Gardens, 
at  fifty,  not  including  of  course  numerous  varieties  and  sports. 
Thirty-nine  are  indigenous  ;  the  others  have  been  introduced  at 
various  times  from  Korea,  China,  or  the  Luchu  Islands,  either  for 
industrial  use  or  as  exotics  for  the  adornment  of  rich  men's  gardens.* 
Such  are  the  hochiku,  or  square  bamboo,  and  the  suwb-chiku  whose 
stem,  when  young,  is  of  a  bright  red  hue.  To  our  own  thinking, 
some  of  the  commonest  species  are  also  the  most  graceful, — the 
moso-dake  or  "  feathery  bamboo,"  for  instance,  with  its  golden  stem 
and  overhanging  plume-like  fronds,  clumps  of  which — though  it, 
too,  was  introduced  from  China  no  earlier  than  A.  D.  1738 — are 
now  among  the  most  typical  features  of  the  Japanese  landscape, 
and  the  sasa,  or  bamboo  grass,  that  grows  on  hills  and  in  country 
lanes,  and  whose  leaves,  bright  green  in  spring,  become  edged  with 
white  as  the  year  wanes,  so  that  each  comes  to  look  like  a  little 
"cloud  with  a  silver  lining." 

Most  Europeans  persist  in  regarding  the  bamboo  as  a  delicate 
tropical  plant,  which  would  not  stand  our  northern  climate.  We 
should  like  to  show  such  persons  the  tall  Japanese  bamboos 
bending  under  the  weight  of  the  February  snow,  in  parts  of  the 
country  where  the  snowfall  is  measured,  not  in  inches,  but  in  feet. 
As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  bamboo  in  snow-time  is  a  favourite 
Japanese  art-motive. 

By  the  Japanese  themselves  the  bamboo  is  not  regarded  as  a 
tree.  In  their  eyes  it  forms  a  category  apart,  so  that  they  speak  of 
"trees  and  bamboos."  Properly  it  belongs  to  the  grasses  : — it  is 
just  a  giant  grass,  and  nothing  more.  Its  rate  of  growth  is  as- 
tonishing compared  with  that  of  most  other  members  of  the  vege- 
table kingdom,  sometimes  several  feet  in  the  course  of  four-and- 
twenty  hours.  Indeed,  from  every  point  of  view  the  bamboo 
presents  interesting  subject-matter  for  observation,  while  practically 
it  is  one  of  nature's  choicest  gifts  to  man. 


*  In  the  opinion  of  Sir  Ernest  Satovv,  the  number  of  indigenous  species  is  much  smaller 
than  that  stated  by  Prof.  Matsumura.      The  question  is  a  difficult  one. 


60  Bathing. 

Books  recommended.  The  Uses  of  Bamboo  in  Japan,  by  Charles  Holme,  in  Vol. 
I.  of  the  "  Transactions  of  the  Japan  Society." — The  Culture  of  Bamboos  in  Japan,  by  Sir 
Ernest  Satow,  forming  Part  III.  of  Vol.  XXVII.  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions,"  is  an 
elaborate  scientific  treatise  founded  on  the  work  of  a  Japanese  botanist  named  Katayama, 
and  abundantly  illustrated.  Mitford's  Bamboo  Garden  is  a  more  popular  book,  in  which 
the  subject  is  viewed  chiefly  from  the  standpoint  of  the  acclimatisation  of  the  bamboo 
in  England.  We  ourselves  have  to  thank  Prof.  Matsumura  for  information  concerning 
the  number  of  Japanese  species  of  bamboo  known  up  to  date. 


Bathing.  Cleanliness  is  one  of  the  few  original  items  of  Japa- 
nese civilisation.  Almost  all  other  Japanese  institutions  have  their 
root  in  China,  but  not  tubs.  We  read  in  the  Japanese  mythology 
that  the  god  Izanagi,  on  returning  from  a  visit  to  his  dead  wife  in 
Hades,  purified  himself  in  the  waters  of  a  stream.  Ceremonial 
purifications  continue  to  form  part  of  the  Shinto  ritual.  But  viewed 
generally,  the  cleanliness  in  which  the  Japanese  excel  the  rest  of 
mankind  has  nothing  to  do  with  godliness.  They  are  clean  for  the 
personal  satisfaction  of  being  clean.  Their  hot  baths — for  they 
almost  all  bathe  in  very  hot  water  of  about  no°  Fahrenheit — also 
help  to  keep  them  warm  in  winter.  For  though  moderately  hot 
water  gives  a  chilly  reaction,  this  is  not  the  case  when  the  water  is 
extremely  hot,  neither  is  there  then  any  fear  of  catching  cold. 
There  are  over  eleven  hundred  public  baths  in  the  city  of  Tokyo, 
in  which  it  is  calculated  that  five  hundred  thousand  persons  bathe 
daily,  the  usual  charge  being  2\  sen  (under  three  farthings  of 
English  money)  for  adults,  2  sen  for  children,  and  i-|-  sen  for 
infants  in  arms.  In  addition  to  this,  every  respectable  private 
house  has  its  own  bath-room.  Other  cities  and  even  villages  are 
similarly  provided.  Generally,  but  not  always,  a  barrier  separates 
the  sexes  from  each  other.  Where  there  are  neither  bathing 
establishments  nor  private  bath-rooms,  the  people  take  their  tubs 
out-of-doors,  unless  indeed  a  policeman,  charged  with  carrying  out 
the  modern  regulations,  happen  to  be  prowling  about  the  neigh- 
bourhood ;  for  cleanliness  is  more  esteemed  by  the  Japanese  than 
our  artificial  Western  prudery.  As  the  editor  of  the  Japan  Mail 
has  well  said,  the  nude  is  seen  in  Japan,  but  is  not  looked  at. 

Some    Europeans    have    tried    to    pick    holes    in    the   Japanese 


Bathing.  6 1 

system,  saying  that  the  bathers  put  on  their  dirty  clothes  when 
they  have  dried  themselves.  True,  the  Japanese  of  the  old  school 
have  nothing  so  perfect  as  our  system  of  daily  renovated  linen. 
But  as  the  bodies  even  of  the  men  of  the  lowest  class  are  constantly 
washed  and  scrubbed,  it  is  hardly  to  be  supposed  that  their 
garments,  though  perhaps  dusty  outside,  can  be  very  dirty  within. 
A  Japanese  crowd  is  the  sweetest  in  the  world.  The  charm  of  the 
Japanese  system  of  hot  bathing  is  proved  by  the  fact  that  almost 
all  the  foreigners  resident  in  the  country  adopt  it.  There  seems, 
too,  to  be  something  in  the  climate  which  renders  hot  baths 
healthier  than  cold.  By  persisting  in  the  use  of  cold  water  one 
man  gets  rheumatism,  a  second  gets  fever,  a  third  a  never-ending 
continuance  of  colds  and  coughs.  So  nearly  all  end  by  coming 
round  to  the  Japanese  plan,  the  chief  foreign  contribution  to  its 
improvement  being  the  use  of  a  separate  bath  by  each  person.  In 
a  Japanese  family  the  same  bath  does  for  all  the  members ;  and  as 
man  is  the  nobler  sex,  the  gentlemen  usually  take  it  first,  in  the 
order  of  their  age  or  dignity,  the  ladies  afterwards,  and  then  the 
younger  children,  the  servants  enjoying  it  last  at  a  late  hour  of  the 
evening,  if  they  be  not  sent  to  a  public  bath-house  instead.  It 
must  be  understood  that  each  bather  first  cleans  himself  outside 
the  bath  by  ladling  water  over  his  body.  Nowadays  soap,  too, 
is  much  used.  The  original  national  cleanser  was  the  bran  bag 
(nuka-bukuro),  made  by  sewing  a  handful  of  bran  into  a  small 
piece  of  linen,  which  furnishes  a  deliciously  soft  washing  material. 
Thus  each  one  enters  the  bath  already  clean,  to  enjoy  the  luxury 
of  a  good  boiling. 

The  national  passion  for  bathing  leads  all  classes  to  make 
extensive  use  of  the  hot  mineral  springs  in  which  their  volcano- 
studded  land  abounds.  Sometimes  they  carry  their  enjoyment  of 
this  simple  luxury  to  an  almost  incredible  extreme.  At  Kawara- 
yu,  a  tiny  spa  not  far  from  Ikao  in  the  province  of  Joshii — one 
of  those  places,  of  which  there  are  many  in  Japan,  which  look  as 
if  they  were  at  the  very  end  of  the  world,  so  steep  are  the 
mountains  shutting  them  in  on  every  side — the  bathers  stay  in  the 


6  2  Bibliography. 

water  for  a  month  on  end,  with  a  stone  on  their  lap  to  prevent 
them  from  floating  in  their  sleep.  When  we  were  there  some 
years  ago,  the  care-taker  of  the  establishment,  a  hale  old  man  of 
eighty,  used  to  stay  in  the  bath  during  the  entire  winter.  To 
be  sure,  the  water  is,  in  this  particular  case,  one  or  two  degrees 
below  blood-heat.  Thus  alone  is  so  strange  a  life  rendered  pos- 
sible. In  another  case,  some  of  the  inhabitants  of  a  certain  village 
famed  for  its  hot  springs  excused  themselves  to  the  present 
writer  for  their  dirtiness  during  the  busy  summer  months  : 
"For,"  said  they,  "we  have  only  time  to  bathe  twice  a  day." 
"How  often,  then,  do  you  bathe  in  winter?"  "Oh!  about  four 
or  five  times  daily.  The  children  get  into  the  bath  whenever  they 
feel  cold." 

Sea-bathing  was  not  formerly  much  practised  ;  but  since  1885 
the  upper  classes  have  taken  to  it,  in  imitation  of  European  usage, 
and  the  coast  is  now  dotted  with  bathing  establishments  under 
medical  supervision.  Oiso,  Ushibuse,  Kamakura,  and  Dzushi  are 
the  favourite  sea-side  places  of  the  gentry  of  Tokyo. 

Bibliography.  The  best,  for  European  books  on  Japan,  is 
Fr.  von  Wenckstern's  Bibliography  of  the  Japanese  Empire,  which, 
however,  only  goes  as  far  as  the  year  1895.  It  includes  a 
facsimile  reprint  of  Leon  Pages'  Bibliographie  Japonaise,  which 
had  appeared  a  generation  earlier.  Though  not  a  regular  bibliogra- 
phy, Sir  Ernest  Satow's  admirable  article  on  Japanese  Literature 
in  the  "American  Cyclopaedia"  gives  the  titles  of  a  considerable 
number  of  native  Japanese  books.  The  Gunsho  Ichiran,  published 
in  1 80 1,  ranks  as  the  standard  Japanese  authority  on  the  subject, 
but  takes  no  notice  of  novels  and  other  works  of  a  popular  nature. 
Samura's  Zasho  Gedai  (revised  edition,  1904)  has  a  more  extended 
scope. 

Birthdays  are  not  much  observed  in  Japan,  except  that  rice 
mixed  with  red  beans  is  eaten  on  the  auspicious  day.  All  the 
little  girls  celebrate  their  yearly  holiday    on  the  3rd  March,  and 


Blackening  the  Teeth.  63 

the  little  boys  on  the  5th  May,  as  explained  in  the  Article  on 
Children.  From  another  point  of  view,  the  1st  January  may  be 
considered  the  universal  birthday  ;  for  the  Japanese  do  not  wait 
till  the  actual  anniversary  of  birth  has  come  round  to  call  a 
person  a  year  older,  but  date  the  addition  to  his  age  from  the 
New.  Year,  as  already  explained  on  page  12.  The  sixty-first 
birthday  is  the  only  one  about  which  much  fuss  is  made.  This 
is  because  the  old  man  or  woman,  having  lived  through  one 
revolution  of  the  sexagenary  cycle,  then  begins  a  second  round, 
which  is  in  itself  an  extraordinary  event  ;  for  the  Japanese  reckon 
youth  to  last  from  birth  to  the  age  of  twenty,  middle  age  from 
twenty  to  forty,  and  old  age  from  forty  to  sixty.  This  last  term 
corresponds  to  the  Psalmist's  "three  score  and  ten,"'  as  the  natural 
limit  of  human  existence. 

Blackening  the  Teeth.  This  peculiar  custom  is  at  least  as 
old  as  A.D.  920  ;  but  the  reason  for  it  is  unknown.  It  was  finally 
prohibited  in  the  case  of  men  in  the  year  1870.  Even  women 
have  now  abandoned  it  in  Tokyo,  Kyoto,  and  the  circumjacent 
provinces ;  and  to  see  it  surviving  as  a  means  of  feminine 
adornment  ( ? ),  one  must  repair  to  certain  remote  rural  districts, 
— the  north-west  coast,  for  instance,  or  the  extreme  north-east, 
where  distance  and  poverty  have  acted  as  conservative  forces. 
Every  married  woman  in  the  land  had  her  teeth  blackened,  until 
the  present  Empress  set  the  example  of  discontinuing  the  practice. 
Fortunately,  the  efficacy  of  the  preparation  used  wears  out  after 
a  few  days,  so  that  the  ladies  of  Japan  experienced  no  difficulty 
in  getting  their  mouths  white  again.  Mr.  A.  B.  Mitford,  in  his 
amusing  Tales  of  Old  Japan,  gives  the  following  recipe  for  tooth- 
blacking,  as  having  been  supplied  to  him  by  a  fashionable  Yedo 
druggist : — "  Take  three  pints  of  water,  and,  having  warmed  it, 
add  half  a  teacupful  of  wine.*  Put  into  this  mixture  a  quantity  of 
red-hot  iron  ;  allow  it  to  stand  for  five  or  six  days,  when  there  will 

*  By  "  wine,"  must  of  course  be  meant  Japanese  sake. 


64  Books  on  Japan. 

be  a  scum  on  the  top  of  the  mixture,  which  should  then  be  poured 
into  a  small  teacup  and  placed  near  a  fire.  When  it  is  warm, 
powdered  gall-nuts  and  iron  filings  should  be  added  to  it,  and  the 
whole  should  be  warmed  again.  The  liquid  is  then  painted  on 
to  the  teeth  by  means  of  a  soft  feather  brush,  with  more  powdered 
gall-nuts  and  iron,  and,  after  several  applications,  the  desired 
colour  will  be  obtained."' 

Books  on  Japan.  Von  Wenckstenrs  Bibliography  of  the 
Japanese  Empire  contains  a  great  many  thousands  of  entries,  from 
which  it  may  be  inferred  that  not  to  have  written  a  book  about 
Japan  is  fast  becoming  a  title  to  distinction.  The  art  of  Japan, 
the  history  of  Japan,  the  language,  folk-lore,  botany,  even  the 
earthquakes  and  the  diseases  of  Japan — each  of  these,  with  many 
other  subjects,  has  a  little  library  to  itself.  Then  there  are  the 
works  of  an  encyclopedic  character,  and  there  are  the  books  of 
travel.  Some  of  the  latter  possess  great  value,  as  photographing 
Japanese  manners  for  us  at  certain  periods.  Others  are  at  the 
ordinary  low  level  of  globe-trotting  literature, — twaddle  enlivened 
by  statistics  at  second-hand. 

We  give  references  at  the  end  of  most  of  the  articles  of  this 
work  to  the  chief  authorities  on  each  special  subject.  At  the  risk 
of  offending  innumerable  writers,  we  now  venture  to  pick  out  the 
following  dozen  works  as  probably  the  most  generally  useful  that 
are  accessible  to  English  readers.  Of  course  it  is  more  than  pos- 
sible that  some  of  the  really  best  have  escaped  our  notice  or  our 
memory.  Anyhow,  an  imperfect  list  will  perhaps  be  deemed 
better  than  none  at  all  : — 

i.  "The  Mikado's  Empire,'"'  by  the  Rev.  W.  E.  Griffis.  This 
is  the  book  best-calculated  to  give  the  general  reader  just  the 
information  that  he  requires,  and  to  give  it  to  him  in  a  manner  not 
too  technical.  The  first  volume  is  devoted  to  history,  the  second 
to  the  author's  personal  experiences  and  to  Japanese  life  in  modern 
days.  The  tenth  edition  brings  the  story  down  to  1903.  More 
than  one  reader  of  cultivated  taste  has,  indeed,  complained  of  the 


Books  on  Japan.  65 

author's  tendency  to  "gush,"  and  of  the  occasional  tawdriness  of 
his  style.*  But  these  faults  are  on  the  surface,  and  do  not  touch  the 
genuine  value  of  the  book. 

2.  Lafcadio  Hearn'sf  "Glimpses  of  Unfamiliar  Japan," 
together  with  the  succeeding  volumes  entitled  "  Out  of  the 
East''  and  "Kokoro."J  Never  perhaps  was  scientific  accuracy 
of  detail  married  to  such  tender  and  exquisite  brilliancy  of  style. 
In  reading  these  profoundly  original  essays,  we  feel  the  truth  of 
Richard  Wagner's  saying,  that  "  Alles  Verstdndniss  kommt  uns 
nur  durch  die  Liebe."  Lafcadio  Hearn  understands  contemporary 
Japan  better,  and  makes  us  understand  it  better,  than  any  other 
writer,  because  he  loves  it  better.  Japanese  life,  manners,  thoughts, 
aspirations,  the  student  class,  the  singing-girls,  the  politicians, 
the  delightful  country-folk  of  secluded  hamlets  who  still  bow 
down  before  ancestral  gods,  Japan's  attitude  in  time  of  war, 
Buddhist  funeral  services  chanted  by  priestly  choirs  in  vestments 
gold-embroidered,  not  men  only  but  ghosts  and  folk-lore  fancies, 
the  scenery  of  remote  islands  which  Hearn  alone  among  Euro- 
peans has  ever  trod, — not  a  single  thing  Japanese,  in  short,  except 
perhaps  the  humorous  side  of  native  life,  but  these  wonderful  books 
shed  on  it  the  blended  light  of  poetry  and  truth.  Our  only  quarrel 
is  with  some  of  Lafcadio  Hearn's  judgments  : — in  righting  the 
Japanese,  he  seems  to  us  continually  to  wrong  his  own  race.  The 
objectionable  character  in  his  stories  is  too  apt  to  be  a  European. 
However,  Europe  is  well-able  to  take  care  of  herself;  and  if  this  be 
the  price  demanded  for  so  great  a  gift  to  literature  and  ethnologic 
science,  we  at  least  will  pay  it  uncomplainingly. 

*  Thus  the  nose  is  spoken  of  as  the  "nasal  ornament;"  a  volcano  in  a  state  of 
eruption  is  said  to  "  ulcer  its  crater  jaws ;  "  laughing  is  called  an  "explosion  of  risibil- 
ities," etc.,  etc. 

t  Mr.  Hearn's  nationality  having  been*  sometimes  questioned,  we  may  mention  that  in 
1896  he  became  a  Japanese,  assuming  the  new  name  of  Koizumi  Yakumo.  Up  till  that 
time  he  had  been  a  British  subject,  having  been  born  in  Corfu.  Before  settling  in  Japan  in 
1890,  he  had  resided  for  many  years  in  the  United  States,  where  his  works  have  always 
been  published. 

J  There  are  six  or  seven  later  volumes  from  the  same  gifted  hand,  displaying  much  of 
the  same  charm  cf  style,  but  increasingly  subjective  in  treatment. 


66  Books  on  Japan. 

3.  "Japanese  Girls  and  Women,"  by  Miss  A.  M.  Bacon. 
This  modest  volume  and  its  sequel,  A  Japanese  Interior,  give  in 
a  short  compass  the  best  account  that  has  yet  been  published  of 
Japanese  family  life, — a  sanctum  into  which  all  travellers  would 
fain  peep,  but  of  which  even  most  old  residents  know  surprisingly 
little.  The  sobriety  of  Miss  Bacon's  judgments  and  the  simplicity 
of  her  style  contrast  almost  piquantly  with  Lafcadio  Hearn's 
tropical  luxuriance. 

4.  "Tales  of  Old  Japan,"  by  A.  B.  Mitford  (Lord  Redesdale), 
an  old  book,  but  always  fresh.  Love,  revenge,  the  "happy 
despatch,"  adventure  by  land  and  sea,  quaint  fairy-tales,  Buddhist 
sermons  quainter  still, — in  a  word,  the  whole  picturesque  life  of 
Old  Japan, — these  are  the  things  which  Mr.  Mitford  gives  us  ;  and 
he  gives  them  in  a  style  that  renders  them  doubly  attractive. 

5.  "A  History  of  Japanese  Literature,"  by  W.  G.  Aston.  All 
that  the  outside  world  can  ever  hope  to  understand,  or  is  ever 
likely  to  wish  to  learn,  about  Japanese  poetry  and  prose  is  here 
compressed  by  the  most  accurate,  and  yet  least  pedantic,  of 
scholars  into  the  limits  of  a  single  octavo  volume.  This  history 
of  the  Japanese  mind  during  twelve  centuries — for  such  in  effect 
it  is — shows  how  illusory  are  the  common  European  notions 
of  "the  unchanging  East;"  for  all,  from  700  to  1900,  were 
centuries  of  change,  most  were  centuries  of  progress. 

6.  "  The  Soul  of  the  Far  East,"  by  Percival  Lowell.  With 
a  dazzling  array  of  metaphysical  epigrams,  this  distinguished 
Bostonian  attacks  the  inner  nature  of  the  Japanese  soul,  whose 
hall-mark  he  discovers  in  "impersonality."  Nothing  on  earth — or 
elsewhere — being  too  profound  for  an  intellect  so  truly  meteor-like 
in  its  brilliancy,  Lowell,  in  his  later  work,  Occult  Japan,  discovers 
to  us  Japanese  possession,  exorcism,  and  miracle-working,  whose 
very  existence  had  scarcely  been  suspected. 

7.  "  Evolution  of  the  Japanese,"  by  Rev.  Sidney  L.  Gulick. 
An  elaborate  and  masterly  study  of  the  mental  characteristics  of 
the  Japanese  people,  undertaken  with  special  reference  to  that 
sweeping  change  in  their  institutions  which  the  latter  half  of  the 
nineteenth  century  inaugurated. 


Books  on  Japan.  67 

8.  "A  History  of  Japan  during  the  Century  of  Early 
European  Intercourse  (1542-165 1),"  by  J.  Murdoch.  Based  on 
a  critical  study  of  the  original  documents  in  nine  languages,  this 
unique  work  describes  in  full  detail  not  only  civil  wars,  diplomatic 
intrigues,  and  the  fortunes  of  Japan's  greatest  men,  but  also  her 
first  relations  with  the  Portuguese,  the  Dutch,  and  other  Western 
nations,  and  more  especially  the  enthusiastic  reception  and 
subsequent  persecution  of  the  Catholic  missionaries.  Certain 
disorders  of  style  alone  mar  the  author's  vivid  picture  of  the  most 
important  century  of  Japanese  history.  A  second  volume  is  in 
preparation. 

9.  "  The  Capital  of  the  Tycoon,"  by  Sir  Rutherford  Alcock. 
Though  published  some  forty  years  ago,  and  though  as  a  narra- 
tive, it  covers  only  the  brief  space  of  three  years  (1859-1862),  this 
book  is  still  delightful  and  profitable  reading.  In  its  pages  we  live 
with  the  fathers  of  the  men  who  rule  Japan  to-day.  True,  these 
men  may  reject  the  application  to  their  case  of  the  proverb  which 
says  "like  father,  like  son.''  But  we  foreign  lookers-on,  who 
perhaps  after  all  see  something  of  the  game,  must  be  permitted 
to  hold  a  different  opinion,  and  to  believe  that  even  in  cases  so 
exceptional  as  Japan's,  the  political  and  social  questions  of  a 
country  can  only  then  be  fairly  comprehended  when  its  past  is 
constantly  borne  in  mind.  Sir  Rutherford's  book  combines  the 
light  touch  of  the  skilled  diplomat  and  man  of  the  world  with  the 
careful  research  of  the  genuine  student. 

10.  "Japan  and  China,"  by  Capt.  F.  Brinkley.  This  work 
in  twelve  handsome  volumes,  besides  covering  a  multitude  of  other 
subjects,  treats  authoritatively  of  art — more  especially  keramic  art, 
to  which  an  entire  volume  is  devoted — and  of  the  political  history 
of  the  last  fifty  years.  The  large  sections  describing  the  manners 
and  customs  of  the  Japanese  Court  and  people  at  various  periods 
are  also  very  interesting.  But  the  seeker  after  information  on  Japan 
could  dispense  with  the  four  volumes  on  China,  which  come  as  a 
sort  of  appendix  to  the  eight  volumes  in  which  Japan,  though 
a  slenderer  subject,  is  so  much  more  fully  dealt  with. 


68  Books  on  Japan. 

n.  The  "Transactions  of  the  Asiatic  Society  of  Japan.'' 
Almost  every  subject  interesting  to  the  student  of  Japanese  matters 
is  treated  of  in  the  pages  of  these  Transactions,  which  have,  for 
more  than  thirty  years  past,  been  the  favourite  vehicle  of  publica- 
tion for  the  researches  of  Satow,  Aston,  Gubbins,  Blakiston,  Pryer, 
Geerts,  Batchelor,  Troup,  Wigmore,  Knox,  Florenz,  Greene,  Lloyd, 
and  other  eminent  scholars  and  specialists.  Of  course  the  "Asiatic 
Transactions  "  are  not  light  reading ;  their  appeal  is  to  the  serious 
student. 

12.  "Descriptive  and  Historical  Catalogue  of  Japanese 
and  Chinese  Paintings  in  the  British  Museum,"  by  Wm. 
Anderson.  Such  a  title  does  injustice  to  what  is  really  an  original 
and  valuable  book.  Who  would  think  of  spending  over  £  i  ster- 
ling on  a  catalogue  ?  But  this  so-called  catalogue  is  really  a  mine 
of  information  on  numberless  Japanese  matters.  To  begin  with,  it 
gives  a  complete  history  of  Japanese  pictorial  art.  Then  the  author's 
painstaking  research,  with  the  assistance  of  Sir  Ernest  Satow,  into 
the  "motives"  of  this  art — drawn,  as  they  are,  from  the  history  of 
the  country,  from  its  religions,  its  superstitions,  its  literature,  its 
famous  sites — has  shed  a  flood  of  light  on  these  and  many  kindred 
subjects.  Not  that  the  book  is  easy  reading,  or  meant  to  be  read 
at  all  continuously.  Still,  the  store  of  anecdotes  which  it  contains 
will  interest  every  person,  who,  when  confronted  by  a  Japanese 
picture  or  other  work  of  art,  prefers  knowing  what  it  is  about  to 
gaping  at  it  ignorantly. 

Where  one  has  hundreds  of  books  to  choose  from,  such  a  list  as 
the  above  might  of  course  be  indefinitely  extended.  Pearson's 
Flights  Inside  and  Outside  Paradise  starts  to  our  recollection  at 
once  as  the  book  of  all  others  to  help  to  while  away  a  rainy  day  at 
a  tea-house.  Miss  Bird's  (Mrs.  Bishop's)  Unbeaten  Tracks  in 
Japan  is  a  capital  description  of  Japanese  travel  in  the  "good 
old  days"  of  a  quarter  of  a  century  ago,  her  account  of  the  Ainos 
being  specially  valuable.  Rein's  Japan,  with  its  sequel  The 
Industries  of  Japan,  is  an  encyclopedic  work  now  out  of  print  and 
in   some  respects    antiquated,    but   which   should    nevertheless,    if 


Books  on  Japan.  69 

possible,  be  consulted  by  every  serious  student.*  Black's  Young 
Japan  records  the  impressions  of  a  well-informed  resident  during 
the  years  185 8- 18 79  with  the  vividness  peculiar  to  memoirs  jotted 
down  from  day  to  day,  as  the  events  they  describe  are  unfolding 
themselves.  Miss  Scidmore's  Jinrikisha  Days  in  Japan  will  be 
found  a  genial  companion,  as  also  will  Brownell's  Heart  of  Japan. 
Notes  in  Japan,  by  Alfred  Parsons,  may  be  recommended. 
Knapp's  Feudal  aud  Modem  Japan  is  bright  and  sympathetic. 
Dening's  Life  of  Hideyoshi  and  Japan  in  Days  of  Yore  give  us 
refreshing  peeps  into  a  state  of  society  less  prosaic  than  our  own. 
Inoue's  Sketches  of  Tokyo  Life  brim  over  with  interest,  while  the 
various  illustrated  booklets  printed  on  crape  paper  at  Hasegawa's 
press  form  pretty  souvenirs.  Then,  too,  come  the  books  in  foreign 
languages, — such,  for  instance,  as  Humbert's  Le  Jap07i  et  les 
Japonais,  Bousquet's  Le  Japon  de  nos  Jours,  Bellessort's  La  Sociele 
Japonaise,  and  Dumolard's  Le  Japon  Politique,  Economique  et  Social. 
Father  Papinot's  Diciionnaire  de  I'Hisioire  et  de  la  Geographic  du 
Japon  is  a  useful  compilation,  to  which  no  analogue  exists  in  English. 
For  Pierre  Loti's  books  the  resident  community  has  less  respect 
than  the  public  at  home  : — his  inaccuracy  and  superficiality  go 
against  the  grain.  Nevertheless,  the  illustrations  to  his  Madame 
Chrysantheme  are  very  pretty,  and  the  letter-press  is  worth  skimming 
through,  though  the  volume  can  in  nowise  be  recommended  either 
to  misses  or  to  missionaries.  What  has  struck  us  as  the  liveliest 
and  best  of  all  popular  books  on  Japan  is  in  German.  We  mean 
Netto's  Papier schmctierlinge  aus  Japan,  with  its  delightful  illustra- 
tions and  its  epigrammatic  text.  Nippold's  descriptions  and  Junker 
von  Landegg's  stories  are  much  read.  With  more  serious  works, 
too,  the  Germans  are  naturally  to  the  front.  The  Miltheilungen  of 
the  German  Asiatic  Society  {Deutsche  Gesellschaft  fur  Naiur-  und 
Volkerkunde  Oslasiens)  are  a  mine  of  information  on  matters 
scientific,  legal,  etc.,  etc. 

*  We  refer  here  to  the  authorised  English  translation,  which  was  based  on  a  careful 
revision  of  the  original  German  text.  This  original,  too,  is  now  out  of  print ;  but  a  new- 
edition  of  it  is  expected  to  appear  shortly. 


70  Books  on  Japan. 

Not  content  with  the  reality  of  Japan  as  it  is  or  as  it  was,  some 
imaginative  writers  have  founded  novels  on  Japanese  subjects.  We 
thus  have  books  such  as  Arimas,  which  is  whimsical  and  clever, 
and  a  dozen  others  that  somehow  we  have  never  been  able  to  make 
up  our  mind  to  dip  into.  As  for  books  of  travel,  there  is  literally 
no  end  to  the  making  of  them.  Almost  every  possible  space  of 
time,  from  Seven  Weeks  in  Japan  to  Eight  Years  in  Japan  and 
Nine  Years  in  Nipon,  has  furnished  the  title  for  a  volume.  So 
have  almost  all  the  more  piquant  adjectives  with  the  word 
"  Japan  "  attached,  as  The  Real  Japan,  Heroic  Japan,  Ceremonial 
Japan,  Agitated  Japan,  Le  Japon  Pilioresque,  Le  Japon  Pratique, 
etc.,  etc.  There  are  Expeditions  to  Japan,  Sketches  of  Japan,  Rims 
in  Japan,  Gleanings  from  Japan,  Short  Leave  to  Japan,  Japan  as 
we  Saw  it,  Lotos-lime  in  Japan,  Journeys,  Travels,  Trips,  Excur- 
sions, Impressions,  Letters,  etc.,  etc.,  almost  ad  infinitum;  "and 
apt  alliteration's  artful  aid  "  has  been  borrowed  for  such  titles  as  A 
Jaunt  in  Japan,  The  Gist  of  Japan,  Japanese  Jingles,  and  several 
others.  A  Diplomatist's  Wife  in  Japan,  by  Mrs.  Hugh  Fraser,  and 
other  works  from  the  same  hand  give  a  readable  account  of  life  in 
Tokyo  and  at  the  usual  summer  holiday  resorts,  while  Weston,  in 
his  Japanese  Alps,  leads  us  touring  among  the  little-known  peaks 
of  the  provinces  of  Etchu,  Hida,  and  Shinano.  Many  excellent 
things,  on  the  other  hand,  may  be  unearthed  from  the  files  of  old 
newspapers.  See,  for  instance,  Rudyard  Kipling's  Letters  to  the 
"Times,"  1892,  which  are  the  most  graphic  ever  penned  by  a 
globe-trotter, — but  then  what  a  globe-trotter !  They  have  been 
republished  in  From  Sea  to  Sea.  Many  general  books  of  travel 
have  chapters  devoted  to  Japan.  The  liveliest  is  Miss  Duncan's 
Social  Departure.  For  though  the  author  revels  in  Japan  as  "a 
many-tinted  fairy-tale,"  the  sense  of  humour  which  never  deserts 
her  prevents  her  enthusiasm  from  degenerating  into  mawkishness. 
Perhaps  the  most  entertaining  specimen  of  globe-trotting  literature 
of  another  calibre  is  that  much  older  book,  Miss  Margaretha 
WTeppner's  North  Star  and  Southern  Cross.  We  do  not  wish  to 
make  any  statement  which  cannot  be  verified,  and   therefore    we 


Books  on  Japan.  71 

will  not  say  that  the  author  is  as  mad  as  a  March  hare.  Her  idee 
fixe  seems  to  have  been  that  every  foreign  man  in  Yokohama 
and  "Jeddo"  meditated  an  assault  on  her.  As  for  the  Japanese, 
she  dismisses  them  as  "disgusting  creatures."* 

More  edifying,  if  less  amusing,  than  such  works  are  the  numerous 
monographs  on  special  subjects,  particularly  those  on  art.  Such 
are  Gonse's  U  Art  Japonais,  Audsley  and  Bowes'  various  publica- 
tions on  Keramic  Art,  Seals,  and  Enamels,  Franks's  and  Dresser's 
books,  and  above  all,  Anderson's  Pictorial  Art  0/  Japan,  which 
is  a  magnificent  work,  conceived  in  a  critical  spirit,  written 
with  competent  knowledge,  and  beautifully  illustrated.  Conder's 
Flozvers  0/  Japan  and  Japanese  Gardens,  Piggott's  Music  and 
Musical  Instruments  of  Japan,  Leech's  Butterflies  from  Japan, 
Gowland's  Dolmens  and  Burial  Mounds  in  Japan,  and  Munro's 
Corns  of  Japan  may  be  confidently  recommended  as  the  best 
treatises  on  their  respective  subjects.  Gubbins  has  translated  the 
Japanese  Civil  Code,  making  his  translation  doubly  useful  by 
printing  the  original  opposite  to  it  on  the  same  page.  Lonholm, 
too,  has  done  yeoman's  service  by  rendering  some  of  the  codes 

*  Here  is  a  portion  of  this  authoress's  description  of  Yokohama  and  its  foreign 
residents  : — 

"It  will  be  well  understood  that  the  life  of  the  European  in  Japan  is,  after  all,  a 
wretched  one.  The  senses  and  the  animal  appetite  are  abundantly  provided  for  ;  but 
the  mind,  the  heart,  and  the  soul  are  left  totally  destitute.  There  are  clubs,  it  is  true, 
but  at  the  time  of  my  stay  in  Yokohama,  they  were  mere  gastronomical  resorts.  The 
pure-minded  men  of  the  island  live  at  home,  where  they  can  enjoy  just  as  much  comfort 
as  in  the  clubs,  and  are  rarely  seen  in  them,  except  when  dramatic  companies,  comedi- 
ans, whistlers,  or  such  people  visit  this  land.  A  few  of  the  better  Europeans  visit  the 
club  to  kill  time. 

"I  had  occasion  to  remark  during  my  stay  in  Yokohama  that  the  perennial  monotony 
of  the  place,  and  the  sensual  life  led  there,  have  reduced  many  of  them  to  a  state 
bordering  on  imbecility.  It  was  difficult  to  believe  that  the  drivelling  trash  which  they 
talked  could  have  its  origin  in  the  head  at  all.  The  eyes  of  such  men  are  dull,  and 
they  have  a  ki->d  of  idiotic  stare.  They  see  and  hear  only  what  directly  attracts  the 
stomach  and  senses.  It  is  useless  moralising  further  on  this  subject;  but  I  cannot  refrain 
from  adding  that  the  impression  produced  upon  a  healthy  mind  by  this  portentous  abase- 
ment is  very  disheartening.  Often  when  contemplating  the  superb  scenery  among  which 
these  depraved  creatures  live,  I  have  involuntarily  exclaimed  in  the  words  of  the  poet, 
'  Though  every  prospect  pleases. 
And  only  man  is  vile.'  " 


72  Books  on  Japan. 

into  English,  French,  and  German.  Japans  Volkswirthschafi  und 
Staatshausha.lt,  by  K.  Rathgen,  ranks  as  the  standard  authority  on 
Japanese  financial  and  economic  questions.  Maurice  Courant  has 
written  learnedly  on  a  variety  of  subjects  in  the  Journal  Asiatique 
and  elsewhere.  Morse's  Japanese  Homes  is  a  delightful  account, 
not  only  of  Japanese  architecture,  but  of  every  detail  of  Japanese 
domestic  life,  even  down  to  the  water-bucket  and  the  kitchen 
tongs.  The  only  drawback  is  the  author's  set  purpose  of  viewing 
everything  through  rose-coloured  spectacles,  which  makes  those 
who  would  fain  be  instructed  feel  that  they  are  listening  to  a 
special  pleader  rather  than  to  a  judge.  Unfortunately  for  sober 
science,  the  fascination  exercised  by  Japan  is  so  potent  that  a 
similar  fault  impairs  the  value  of  several  otherwise  first-rate  works. 
Ogawa's  albums  of  collotypes  will  delight  every  lover  of  the 
beautiful.  For  coloured  illustrations  of  scenery  and  the  life  of  the 
people,  the  traveller  is  recommended  to  the  native  book-shops  and 
print-stalls  : — no  foreign  artist  has  succeeded  in  rendering  the  peculiar 
Japanese  colouring. 

Among  books  of  reference,  may  be  mentioned  Bramsen's  Chro- 
nological Tables,  by  which  the  exact  equivalent  of  any  Japanese  date 
can  be  ascertained  ;  the  China  Sea  Directory,  Vol.  IV;  the  various 
Memoirs  of  the  Imperial  University ;  the  British  Consular  Trade 
Reports;  the  Resume  Statistique  de  V Empire  du  Japon,  issued 
yearly  ;  and  the  annual  reports  of  the  various  departments  of  the 
Imperial  Government  on  such  matters  as  education,  railways, 
posts,  etc.,  etc.  We  advert  to  these  last,  because  not  a  few  of  them 
appear  in  English  as  well  as  in  the  vernacular.  Several  Japanese 
educated  abroad  have  written  books  in  European  languages.  The 
work  of  this  class  that  has  made  most  noise  of  late  years  is  a  little 
volume  by  Nitobe  entitled  Bushido,  the  Soul  of  Japan,  which  sets 
forth  in  popular  style  the  system  of  practical  ethics  that  guided  the 
conduct  of  the  Samurai  of  old.  In  somewhat  amusing  contrast  to 
the  patriotic  enthusiasm  of  this  author,  is  the  gloomy  picture  of 
native  family  life  drawn  in  Tamura's  Japanese  Bride.  How  I 
Became  a  Christian,  by  Uchimura  Kanzo,  should  interest  a  large 


Botany.  j$ 

class  of  readers.  Okakura's  Ideals  of  the  East  might  be  taken  for 
Bostonian  handiwork,  but  for  the  Japanese  name  on  the  title-page. 
We  may  also  mention  Nitobe's  monograph  on  The  Intercourse 
between  the  United  States  and  Japan,  Inagaki's  Japan  and  the 
Pacific,  Bunyiu  Nanjio's  Catalogue  of  the  Buddhist  Tripitaka,  and — 
though  they  have  little  relation  to  Japan — the  so-called  poems  of 
Y.  Noguchi,  which  have  made  a  sensation  (in  California). 
Of  works  by  early  travellers,  the  copious  Letters  of  the  Jesuit 
Missionaries,  the  Letters  of  the  English  Pilot  Will  Adams, 
Kaempfer's  History  of  Japan,  and  the  elder  Siebold's  encyclopedic 
productions  are  the  chief.  But  these  are  now  mostly  out  of  print, 
besides  being  out  of  date.  Another  excellent  book,  now  difficult 
to  obtain,  is  Hildreth's  Japan  as  it  Was  and  Is,  in  which  the  gist 
of  what  the  various  early  travellers  have  left  us  concerning  Japan  is 
woven  together  into  one  continuous  narrative,  the  exact  text  of  the 
originals  being  adhered  to  as  far  as  possible. 

Botany.  We  have  not  the  necessary  space,  even  had  we  the 
necessary  ability,  to  enter  into  a  particular  description  of  that  rich 
and  wonderful  Japanese  flora,  which  excites  the  imagination  of  the 
man  of  science  as  much  as  ever  Japanese  works  of  art  in  porcelain, 
bronze,  and  lacquer  excited  the  imagination  of  the  man  of  taste. 
We  can  only  draw  attention  to  a  few  striking  facts  and  theoretical 
considerations,  referring  the  reader  for  all  details  to  Dr.  Rein's 
masterly  resume  of  the  subject,  and  to  the  works  of  Maximowicz, 
Savatier,  Asa  Gray,  Sir  Joseph  Hooker,  Ito  Keisuke,  and  the  other 
specialists  whom  Rein  quotes. 

The  first  impression  made  on  any  fairly  observant  person 
landing  in  Japan  is  the  extraordinary  variety  of  the  vegetation. 
He  sees  the  pine  of  the  north  flourishing  by  the  side  of  the 
bamboo,  or  even  of  the  tropical  palmetto.  A  rice-field,  as  in 
India,  stretches  to  his  right ;  to  his  left  will  be  a  wheat  or  barley_ 
field,  reminding  him  of  Europe ;  or  else  he  is  overshadowed  by 
some  giant  camphor-laurel,  the  like  of  which  grows  only  in 
Formosa.     Equally   unexpected  juxtapositions   occur  wherever  he 


74  Botany. 

travels  throughout  the  archipelago.  No  wonder  that  the  number 
of  known  species  of  trees  and  plants  (exclusive  of  mosses  and  other 
low  organisms)  attains  to  the  enormous  figure  of  2,728,  distributed 
over  941  genera  and  151  orders*  while  it  is  almost  certain  that 
further  investigations  will  raise  the  figure  considerably,  the  northern 
portion  of  the  country  having  been  as  yet  but  imperfectly  explored. 
Of  forest-trees  alone,  Japan — or,  to  be  strictly  accurate,  the 
Japanese  region,  which  includes  also  Korea,  Manchuria,  and  a 
portion  of  Northern  China — possesses  no  less  than  186  species 
divided  among  66  genera,  as  against  the  85  species  in  33  genera 
of  Europe.  The  Atlantic  forest  region  of  North  America  is 
nearly  as  rich  as  Japan,  having  155  species  in  66  genera.  The 
Pacific  forest  region  of  North  America  is  poorer  even  than 
Europe,  having  but  78  species  in  31  genera.  A  further  very 
curious  fact  is  that  North-Eastern  America  and  Japan  possess 
65  genera  in  common.  Evidently  there  must  be  some  powerful 
underlying  cause  connecting  phenomena  at  first  sight  so  caprici- 
ous. Dr.  Rein  lays  great  stress  on  the  general  similarity  of 
climatic  conditions  obtaining  in  Eastern  Asia  and  Eastern  Amer- 
ica, on  the  abundant  rainfall  of  Japan,  and  on  the  convenient 
stepping-stones  for  vegetable  immigrants  formed  by  the  Kurile 
Islands,  Saghalien,  Oki,  Iki,  the  Luchuan  archipelago,  and  other 
islands  both  to  the  west  and  south.  May  we  not  also  accept  Mr. 
Wallace's  theory,  as  propounded  in  his  charming  book,  Island  Life, 
to  the  effect  that  the  glacial  epoch  had  great  influence  in  bringing 
about  the  present  state  of  things  ?  When  the  climate  of  the  north 
temperate  regions  grew  arctic,  some  of  the  trees  and  plants  whose 
habitat  was  there  must  have  perished,  but  others  doubtless  migrated 
in   a   southerly    direction,    where    they    could    still  find  sufficient 


*  This  is  Maximowicz's  estimate,  made  in  the  year  1884.  Of  the  2,728  species,  1,812 
species  belong  to  dicotyledons,  658  to  monocotyledons,  44  to  gymnosperms,  and  214  to 
vascular  cryptogams.  During  the  last  twenty  years,  various  additions  to  and  alter- 
ations in  the  list  have  been  necessitated  through  the  labours  of  botanists  both  native  and 
foreign  ;  but  no  later  attempt  than  that  of  Maximowioz  has  been  made  to  summarise  the 
Japanese  flora. 


Botany.  75 

warmth  to  support  their  existence.  In  Europe,  however,  they  were 
stopped — first  by  the  barrier  of  the  Alps,  and  then  by  the  still 
more  effectual  barrier  of  the  Mediterranean.  On  the  Pacific  slope 
of  America,  they  mostly  perished  owing  to  the  extreme  narrowness 
of  their  habitat,  which  allowed  of  no  free  emigration  in  any  direc- 
tion. The  conditions  of  Eastern  America  and  of  Eastern  Asia 
were  altogether  different.  Here  were  neither  mountain  ranges  nor 
oceans  to  obstruct  the  southward  march  of  the  vegetation  as  it 
retreated  before  the  ice ;  and  when  the  ice  had  disappeared,  all  the 
heat-loving  forms,  safely  preserved  in  the  south,  were  able  to  return 
northward  again,  a  considerable  remnant  of  the  richer  vegetation 
of  an  earlier  geological  age  being  thus  handed  down  to  our  own 
days  in  these  two  favoured  regions. 

A  consideration  to  which  little  attention  has  hitherto  been  paid 
is  the  general  identity  of  the  Japanese  flora  with  that  of  the 
adjacent  coast  of  Asia.  It  is  probable  that  when  Korea  shall  have 
been  thoroughly  explored,  not  a  few  species  now  designated  as 
iaponica  will  be  found  to  be  really  continental  forms.  It  is  already 
known  that  some  of  the  plants  now  most  common  in  Japan  have 
been  introduced  in  historical  times  through  human  agency.  Such 
are,  to  name  but  two,  the  tea-plant  and  the  orange-tree.  The 
introduction  of  the  latter  is  mentioned  by  the  Japanese  poets  of  the 
eighth  century.  The  tea-plant  came  in  with  Buddhism.  We  were 
ourselves,  we  believe,  the  first  to  point  out,  some  twenty  years  ago, 
the  help  which  philology  can  give  to  natural  science  in  this  field, 
by  proving  that  plants  and  also  animals  now  inhabiting  Japan,  but 
originally  imported  from  China  or  Korea,  may  often  be  detected 
in  the  Japanese  language  by  their  slightly  corrupted  Chinese  or 
Korean  names.* 

What  we  have  for  shortness'  sake  termed  the  Japanese  region, 
is  named  by  Rein  "  the  north-eastern  monsoon  region,"  and  is 
furthermore  described    by    him    as    the    "  kingdom  of  magnolias, 


*  Seethe  "Asiatic  Transactions,"  Vol.   X.  Supplement,    p.    70  of  the    Introduction    to 
the  Kojiki. 


76  Buddhism. 

camellias,  and  aralias."  It  coincides  very  nearly  in  latitude  with 
the  region  of  the  Mediterranean ;  but  the  character  of  the  two  is  as 
different  as  can  well  be  imagined.  The  Japanese  region  is  the 
delight  of  the  botanist.  The  Mediterranean  region,  with  its  severer 
forms  and  more  sparing  growth,  better  pleases  the  artist,  who  loves 
vegetation  less  for  its  own  sake  than  as  a  setting  for  the  works  of 
man. 

Books  recommended.  Rein's  Japan,  pp.  135—174,  is  the  best  for  the  general 
reader. — Forest  Flora  of  Japan,  by  C.  S.  Sargent. — See  also  Yatabe's  Iconographia 
Florce  Japonicce,  Savatier's  Enumeratio  Plant  arum  and  the  same  investigator's  Botanique 
Japonaise — Maximowicz,  Miquel,  Satow,  and  otbers  have  written  valuable  monographs. 

Bowing  to  the  Emperor's  Picture  is  a  point  of  Japanese 
etiquette  that  has  caused  much  heart-burning  among  foreigners  and 
native  Christian  converts.  The  custom  is  no  ancient  one,  dating 
back  as  it  does  only  to  189 1.  It  came  in,  like  so  much  else,  as  a 
result  of  the  modern  recrudescence  of  imperialism,  and  is  now 
observed  in  all  schools  and  many  public  offices  on  certain  occasions 
of  annual  recurrence.  The  ground  whereon  objection  has  been 
taken  to  it  is  that  it  savours  of  idolatry.  But  surely  such  an  inter- 
pretation rests  on  confusion  of  thought.  A  human  ruler  is  no 
Baal  or  Moloch.  We  have  never  heard  of  any  one  refusing  to 
bow  to  the  Japanese  emperor,  or  any  other  emperor,  when  seen  in 
the  flesh.  What  harm,  then,  can  there  be  in  saluting  his  picture  ? 
Moreover,  if  a  prostration  made  before  the  living  emperor  does  not 
amount  to  "  worship/'  how  in  reason  can  one  made  before  his 
picture  be  so  construed  ?  This  case  and  the  case  of  the  heathen 
idol  are  not  parallel. 

Bronze.     See  Metal- Work. 

Buddhism.  Many  writers,  from  St.  Francis  Xavier  down- 
wards, have  drawn  attention  to  the  superficial  resemblances  between 
the  Buddhistic  and  the  Roman  Catholic  ceremonial, — the  flowers 
on  the  altar,  the  candles,  the  incense,  the  shaven  heads  of  the 
priests,  the  rosaries,  the  images,  the  processions.  In  point  of 
dogma,  a  whole  world  of  thought  separates  Buddhism  from  every 


Buddhism.  77 

form  of  Christianity.  Knowledge,  enlightenment,  is  the  condition 
of  Buddhistic  grace, — not  faith.  Self-perfectionment  is  the  means 
of  salvation,  not  the  vicarious  sufferings  of  a  Redeemer.  Not 
eternal  life  is  the  end,  and  active  participation  in  unceasing  praise 
and  thanksgiving,  but  absorption  into  Nirvana  (Jap.  Nehari),  practical 
annihilation.  For  Buddhism  teaches  that  existence  is  itself  an  evil, 
springing  from  the  double  root  of  ignorance  and  the  passions.  In 
logical  conformity  with  this  tenet,  it  ignores  the  existence  of  a 
supreme  God  and  Greator  of  worlds.  There  are,  it  is  true,  gods 
in  the  cosmogony  which  Buddhism  inherited  from  Brahminism  ; 
but  they  are  less  important  than  the  Hotoke,  or  Buddhas — men, 
that  is,  who  have  toiled  upward  through  successive  stages  of  exis- 
tence to  the  calm  of  perfect  holiness.  In  fact,  philosophically 
speaking,  two  systems  could  hardly  stand  in  more  glaring  contrast, 
though  it  is  true  that  in  the  lives  of  quiet,  pious  folk  not  given  to 
speculation  or  to  the  logical  following  out  of  the  faith  that  is  in 
them,  the  practical  result  of  both  may  often  coincide. 

These  few  remarks  are  designed  merely  to  point  the  reader 
along  the  true  path  of  enquiry.  It  does  not,  of  course,  fall  within 
the  scope '  of  a  manual  devoted  to  things  Japanese  to  analyse  the 
doctrines  and  practices  of  the  great  and  complicated  Indian  religion, 
which,  commencing  with  the  birth  of  the  Buddha  Shaka  Muni  in 
the  year  B.C.  1027  (so  say  the  Chinese  and  Japanese  Buddhists, 
but  European  scholars  prefer  the  date  B.C.  653),  gradually  became 
the  main  factor  in  the  religious  life  of  all  Eastern  Asia. 

Japan  received  Buddhism  from  Korea,  whither  it  had  spread 
from  China.  The  account  which  the  native  history  books  give  of 
the  introduction  of  Buddhism  into  Japan  is  that  a  golden  image 
of  Buddha  and  some  scrolls  of  the  sutras  were  presented  to  the 
Mikado  Kimmei  by  the  King  of  Hyakusai,  one  of  the  Korean 
states,  in  A.D.  552.  The  Mikado  inclined  to  the  acceptance  of 
the  new  religion ;  but  the  majority  of  his  council,  conservative 
Shintoists,  persuaded  him  to  reject  the  image  from  his  Court.  The 
golden  Buddha  was  accordingly  conferred  upon  one  Soga-no- 
Iname,    who    turned    his    country-house    into    the    first    Buddhist 


78  Buddhism. 

temple  existing  on  the  soil  of  Japan.  A  pestilence,  which  shortly 
broke  out,  was  attributed  by  the  partisans  of  the  old  religion  to  this 
foreign  innovation.  The  temple  was  razed  to  the  ground ;  but 
such  dire  calamities  followed  on  this  act  of  sacrilege  that  it  was 
soon  allowed  to  be  rebuilt.  Buddhist  monks  and  nuns  then 
flocked  over  from  Korea  in  ever-increasing  numbers.  Shotoku 
Taishi,  who  was  prince  regent  under  the  Empress  Suiko  from  A.D. 
593  to  621,  himself  attained  almost  to  the  rank  of  Buddhist 
saintship ;  and  from  that  time  forward  the  new  religion  became 
established  as  the  chief  religion  of  the  land,  though  Shinto  was 
never  entirely  suppressed.  All  education  was  for  centuries  in 
Buddhist  hands,  as  was  the  care  of  the  poor  and  sick ;  Buddhism 
introduced  art,  introduced  medicine,  moulded  the  folk-lore  of  the 
country,  created  its  dramatic  poetry,  deeply  influenced  politics 
and  every  sphere  of  social  and  intellectual  activity.  In  a  word, 
Buddhism  was  the  teacher  under  whose  instruction  the  Japanese 
nation  grew  up.  As  a  nation,  they  are  now  grossly  forgetful  of 
this  fact.  Ask  an  educated  Japanese  a  question  about  Bud- 
dhism, and  ten  to  one  he  will  smile  in  your  face,- — a  hundred  to 
one  that  he  knows  nothing  about  the  subject,  and  glories  in  his 
nescience. 

Chinese  and  Korean  Buddhism  was  already  broken  up  into 
numerous  sects  and  sub-sects  when  it  reached  Japan,- — sects,  too, 
all  of  which  had  come  to  differ  very  widely  in  their  teaching  from 
that  of  the  purer,  simpler  Southern  Buddhism  of  Ceylon  and  Siam. 
Japanese  Buddhism  follows  what  is  termed  the  "  Greater  Vehicle  " 
(Sanskrit  Mah&yana,  Jap.  Daijo),  which  contains  many  unwarranted 
accretions  to  the  original  teaching  of  the  Buddha.*  The  most 
powerful  sects  now  existing  in  Japan  are  the  Tendai,  Shingon, 
Jodo,  and  Zen,  which  are  of  Chinese  origin,  the  Shin  (also  called 
Ikko  or  Monto),  and  the  Nichiren  or  Hokke,  both  native  Japanese 


*  This  view  of  Southern  Buddhism  as  the  purer  has  the  support  of  most  European 
investigators.  It  is,  however,  not  endorsed  by  Mr.  Lloyd,  quoted  below  as  the  first 
authority  on  Japanese  Buddhism,  who  not  unnaturally  follows  the  lead  of  his  Japanese 
instructors. 


Buddhism.  79 

sects  dating  from  the  thirteenth  century.  The  Nichiren  sect  is 
the  most  bigoted,  the  Shingon  the  most  superstitious.  The  Monto 
has  been  compared  to  Protestantism,  because  it  allows  its  priests 
to  marry,  and  teaches  the  doctrine  of  justification  by  faith  in 
Amida*  alone.  The  Zen  is  the  most  interesting  of  all  to  the 
student  of  Japanese  sociology,  on  account  of  its  close  connection 
with  the  cultivation  of  poetry  and  the  arts. 

The  complicated  metaphysics  of  Buddhism  have  awakened  little 
interest  in  the  Japanese  nation.  Another  fact,  curious  but  true,  is 
that  these  people  have  never  been  at  the  trouble  to  translate  the 
Buddhist  canon  into  their  own  language.  The  priests  use  a 
Chinese  version,  the  laity  no  version  at  all  nowadays,  though — to 
judge  from  allusions  scattered  up  and  down  Japanese  literature 
— they  would  seem  to  have  been  more  given  to  searching  the 
scriptures  a  few  hundred  years  ago.  The  Buddhist  religion  was 
disestablished  and  disendowed  during  the  years  187 1-4,  a  step 
taken  in  consequence  of  the  temporary  ascendency  of  Shinto. 
More  recently  a  faint  struggle  has  been  carried  on  by  the  Bud- 
dhist priesthood  against  rivals  in  comparison  with  whom  Shintd  is 
insignificant :  we  mean  the  two  great  streams  of  European  thought, 
— Christianity  and  physical  science.  A  few — a  very  few — men 
trained  in  European  methods  fight  for  the  Buddhist  cause.  They 
do  so,  not  as  orthodox  believers  in  any  existing  sect,  but  because 
they  are  convinced  that  the  philosophical  contents  of  Buddhism  in 
general  are  supported  by  the  doctrine  of  evolution,  and  that  this 
religion  needs  therefore  only  to  be  regenerated  on  modern  lines  in 
order  to  find  universal  acceptance. 

Books  recommended.  Developments  of  Japanese  Buddhism,  by  Rev.  A.  Lloyd  in 
the  "Asiatic  Transactions,"  Vol.  XXII.  Part  III. — Buddhism,  by  Rhys  Davids, 
though  published  by  the  Society  for  Promoting  Christian  Knowledge,  is  quite  free  from 
Christian  prejudice.  — A  brief  outline  of  Japanese  Buddhism  is  given  in  recent  editions  of 
Murray's  Handbjok  for  Japan,  together  with  a  descriptive  list  of  the  most  popular  gods 
and  goddesses.  Students  should  consult  Eitel's  invaluable  Sanskrit-Chinese  Dictionary, 
also  entitled  Handbook  for  Students  of  Chinese  Buddhism. — The  tenets  and  the  devotional 

*  A  deity  dwelling  in  a  lovely  paradise  to  the  west.  Originally  he  was  an  abstrac- 
tion, the  ideal  of  boundless  light. 


80  Capital  Cities. 

literature  of  the  Shin  sect  have  been  treated  of  by  James  Troup  in  Vols.  XIV.  and  XVII. 
of  the  "  Asiatic  Transactions  "  (the  paper  in  the  latter  being  entitled  The  Gobunshb).  This 
sect  curiously  illustrates  the  fact  that  a  religion  may,  with  the  lapse  of  time  and  by  passing 
from  nation  to  nation,  end  by  becoming  almost  the  exact  contrary  of  what  it  was  at  starting. 
At  first  sight,  one  would  imagine  the  Shin  sect  to  be  a  travesty  of  Christianity  rather  than 
a  development  of  Buddhism. — See  also  the  "Asiatic  Transactions,"  Vol.  XXX.  Part  II. 
p.  291,  and  an  article  by  Dr.  L.  Busse  in  Part  50  of  the  "German  Asiatic  Transactions." 

Camphor.  Japan's  new  colony  of  Formosa  is  the  greatest 
camphor-producing  district  in  the  world,  and  Japan  proper  comes 
next,  though  the  ruthless  deforestation  that  has  disgraced  the  present 
epoch  bids  fair  to  ruin  this  source  of  national  income  before  the 
lapse  of  many  more  years.  Unfortunately,  camphor  cannot,  like 
lacquer  or  maple-sugar,  be  extracted  by  tapping.  The  tree  must  be 
felled  and  cut  into  chips,  which  are  steamed  in  a  vat,  the  vapour 
being  made  to  carry  off  the  fumes  into  a  cooling  apparatus,  where 
condensation  takes  place  and  the  camphor  and  camphor-oil  are 
afterwards  skimmed  off.  Cabinets  made  of  camphor-wood  are 
much  esteemed,  not  only  for  the  fine  grain  and  silky  sheen  of  the 
wood,  but  for  its  efficacy  against  the  attacks  of  insects. 

The  camphor-laurel  ranks  among  the  stateliest  of  trees,  frequently 
attaining  to  an  enormous  height  and  girth, — thirty,  forty,  and  even 
fifty  feet  in  circumference.  Grand  specimens  may  be  seen  at  Atami, 
at  Atsuta,  and  at  Dazaifu, — all  places  on  or  near  the  ordinary  lines 
of  travel.  Such  giant  trees  are  often  worshipped  by  the  simple 
country  folk,  who  hang  ropes  of  straw  or  paper  round  them  in  token 
of  reverence. 

Books  recommended.  Rein's  Industries  of  Japan,  pp.  143-150. — Der  Kamjfer- 
baum,  by  Dr.  E.  Grasmann,  in  Part  56  of  the  "  German  Asiatic  Transactions." 

Capital  Cities.  If  the  Japanese  annals  may  be  trusted,  Japan 
has  had  no  less  than  sixty  capitals.  This  is  to  be  traced  to  the  fact 
that  in  ancient  days  there  was  a  superstitious  dread  of  any  place  in 
which  a  person  had  died.  The  sons  of  a  dead  man  built  themselves 
a  new  house.  Hence,  too,  the  successor  of  a  dead  Mikado  estab- 
lished a  new  capital.  The  provinces  of  Yamato,  Yamashiro, 
Kawachi,  and  Settsu,  which  were  the  home  and  centre  of  the  early 
Japanese   monarchy,    are    dotted    with  places,  now  mere  villages, 


Capital  Cities.  81 

sometimes  indeed  empty  names,  but  once  holding  the  proud  posi- 
tion of  capitals  of  the  Empire. 

In  process  of  time,  such  perpetual  changes  proving  incompatible 
with  the  needs  of  the  more  advanced  civilisation  introduced  from 
China  and  Korea,  a  tendency  to  keep  the  Court  settled  in  one  place 
began  to  make  itself  felt.  Nara  in  Yamato  remained  the  capital  for 
seven  reigns,  between  A.D.  709  and  784.  After  further  wanderings, 
the  Court  fixed  itself  at  Kyoto  in  794  ;  and  this  city  continued,  with 
few  interruptions,  to  be  the  residence  of  successive  generations  of 
Mikados  till  the  year  1868,  when  it  was  abandoned  in  favour  of 
Yedo  (Tokyo),  which  had  been  the  capital  of  the  Shoguns  ever 
since  the  year  1590.  Kyoto,  however,  still  nominally  retains  the 
rank  of  a  metropolis,  as  is  indicated  by  its  new  name  of  -^  &" 
Saikyd,  or  "  western  capital,"  in  contradistinction  to  ^  ~^  Tokyo, 
the  "eastern  capital."  The  new  name,  however,  is  little  used. 
The  chief  sights  in  and  near  Kyoto  are  the  Mikado's  palaces,  the ' 
temples  named  Nishi  Hongwanji,  Chion-in,  Kiyomizu-dera,  Gion, 
Ginkakuji,  Kinkakuji,  Higashi  Hongwanji,  San-ju-san-gen-do,  and 
Inari-no-Jinja,  Mount  Hiei-zan,  Lake  Biwa,  Arashi-yama  famous 
for  its  cherry-blossoms  and  maple-leaves,  and  the  rapids  of  the 
Katsura-gawa.  Brocades  and  embroidery  generally  are  the  pro- 
ducts for  which  Kyoto  is  chiefly  noted.  In  the  second  rank  come 
pottery,  porcelain,  cloisonne,  and  bronze. 

Nara,  whose  charms  have  been  sung  by  many  a  Japanese  poet 
from  the  eighth  century  onwards,  is  distinguished  by  the  almost 
English  appearance  of  the  park  which  surrounds  the  ancient  Shinto 
temple  of  Kasuga,  where  tame  deer  crowd  around  the  visitor  to  feed 
out  of  his  hand.  In  Nara,  likewise,  stands  the  great  Buddhist 
temple  of  Todaiji,  with  the  colossal  bronze  image  known  as  the 
Daibulsu  or  "Great  Buddha,"  dating  from  A.D.  749. 

Another  of  the  old  capitals,  Kamakura,  is  distant  only  a  few 
miles  from  Yokohama.  It  was  never  inhabited  by  the  Mikados. 
It  was  the  seat  of  the  Shoguns  from  1189  onwards,  and  of  the  so- 
called  Regents  of  the  Hojo  family    during  the  troublous  Middle 


82  Capital  Cities. 

Ages.  Kamakura,  taken  by  storm  and  burnt  to  the  ground  in  1455 
and  again  in  1526,  gradually  lost  its  importance.  Woods  and  rice- 
fields  now  stretch  over  the  area  that  once  afforded  a  home  to  more 
than  a  million  inhabitants,  and  little  remains  to  tell  of  its  ancient 
splendour,  save  the  great  temple  of  Hachiman  and  the  magnificent 
bronze  image  of  Buddha,  perhaps  the  grandest  of  all  Japanese 
works  of  art. 

The  principal  sights  of  Tokyo  are  the  Shiba  temples,  with  the 
tombs  of  the  Shoguns  of  the  Tokugawa  dynasty,  near  which  is  one 
of  the  best  Kwankbba  or  Bazaars  ;  the  view  over  the  city  from  the 
tower  on  Atago-yama  ;  the  Shinto  temple  named  Shokonsha,  erected 
to  the  memory  of  the  loyal  troops  slain  in  battle ;  the  adjacent 
museum  of  military  objects,  called  the  Yushu-kwan  ;  Ueno  Park, 
with  tombs  and  temples  similar  to  those  of  Shiba,  and  also  an 
interesting  museum ;  the  popular  Buddhist  temple  of  Asakusa,  to 
say  nothing  of  such  modern  European  buildings  as  the  government 
offices,  banks,  hospitals,  prisons,  etc.,  which  will  have  an  interest  for 
some  persons.  In  addition  to  these,  according  to  the  time  of  year, 
there  are  the  cherry-blossoms  of  Ueno,  Shiba,  and  Mukojima,  the 
wistarias  of  Kameido,  the  irises  of  Horikiri,  and  the  chrysanthemums 
of  Dango-zaka.  It  is  also  worth  while  paying  a  visit  to  one  of  the 
theatres,  of  which  the  Kabuki-za  and  Meiji-za  are  the  best,  and  to 
the  wrestling-matches  held  at  the  temple  of  Ek5-in  and  elsewhere. 
But  after  all,  the  chief  sight  of  Tokyo  to  one  fresh  from  home  is 
Tokyo  itself,— -the  quaint  little  wooden  houses,  which  brick  struc- 
tures in  foreign  style  have  only  partially  replaced,  the  open-air  life 
of  the  people,  the  clatter  of  the  clogs,  the  jinrikishas,  the  dainty 
children  powdered  and  rouged  for  a  holiday  outing,  the  graceful 
native  dress  which  Western  fashions  and  fabrics  have  not  succeeded 
in  driving  out,  the  indescribably  grotesque  combinations  of  this 
dress  with  billycock  hats,  Inverness  capes,  and  crochet  tippets. 
There  are  also  the  attractions  of  the  shops,  which  make  Mr.  Percival 
Lowell  truly  observe  that  "  To  stroll  down  the  Broadway  of  Tokyo 
of  an  evening  is  a  liberal  education  in  every  day  art,"  for — as  he 
adds — "  whatever  these  people  fashion,  from  the  toy  of  an  hour  to 


Carving.  83 

the  triumphs  of  all  time,  is  touched  by  a  taste  unknown  elsewhere." 
Mr.  Lowell,  as  an  artist  in  words,  does  not  add  what  we, 
simple  recorders  of  facts,  are  bound  to  do,  that  with  so  much  to 
appeal  to  the  eye,  Tokyo  also  has  not  a  little  that  appeals  to  the 
nose. 

Books  recommended.  For  facts,  Murray's  Handbook  for  Jaj>an ;  The  Castle  of 
Yedo,  by  T.  R.  H.  McClatchie,  in  Vol.  VI.  Part  I.,  and  The  Feudal  Mansions  of  Vedo, 
by  the  same  author,  in  Vol.  VII.  Part  III.  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions  "  For  pictu- 
resque descriptions  and  for  "  talky-talky,"  the  pages  of  globe-trotters  and  book-makers 
innumerable. 

Carving.  The  earliest  specimens  of  Japanese  carving — if  we 
may  so  call  objects  more  probably  moulded  by  the  hand — are 
the  rude  clay  figures  of  men  and  horses  occasionally  found  in  the 
tumuli  of  Central  and  Eastern  Japan  (see  Article  on  Archaeology). 
But  the  art  made  no  progress  till  the  advent  of  Buddhism  in  the 
sixth  century.  A  stone  image  of  the  god  Miroku  was  among  the 
earliest  gifts  of  the  Court  of  Korea  to  that  of  Japan.  Wooden 
images  came  also.  The  Japanese  themselves  soon  learnt  to  carve 
in  both  materials.  The  colossal  figure  of  Jizo,  hewn  in  relief  on  a 
block  of  andesite  on  the  way  between  Ashinoyu  and  Hakone,  is  a 
grand  example.  Like  so  many  other  celebrated  Japanese  works  of 
unknown  antiquity,  it  is  referred  by  popular  tradition  to  the  Bud- 
dhist saint,  Kobo  Daishi  (ninth  century),  who  is  fabled  to  have 
finished  it  in  a  single  night.  The  art  of  wood-carving  has  always 
been  chiefly  in  Buddhist  hands.  The  finest  collection  of  early 
religious  statues  is  that  in  the  museum  at  Nara,  brought  together 
from  various  temples  in  the  surrounding  country.*  Much  later — 
seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries — are  the  charming  painted 
carvings  of  flowers  and  birds  in  the  Nikko  temples  and  in  those  at 
Shiba  and  Ueno  in  Tokyo. 


*  Whether  some  of  the  best  of  these  statues  are  of  native  Japanese,  or  of  Chinese  or 
Korean  workmanship,  is  a  point  still  disputed  among  experts.  On  the  one  hand,  it  is 
alleged  that  nothing  of  equal  merit  has  lieen  discovered  either  in  Korea  or  in  China.  On 
the  other,  there  seems  something  strange  in  the  fact  of  Japanese  statuary  being  practically 
confined  to  the  earlier  ages,  while  all  the  rest  of  the  fine  arts  went  on  improving  until 
a  culminating  point  was  reached  in  the  eighteenth  century. 


84  Carving. 

The  old  Japanese  sculptors  rarely  attempted  portraiture.  A  good 
example  is  offered  by  the  seated  figure  of  Ieyasu  in  the  temple  of 
Toshogu  at  Shiba.  But  in  sculpture,  even  more  than  in  pictorial 
art,  the  strength  of  the  Japanese  talent  lies  rather  in  decoration  and 
in  small  things  than  in  representation  and  in  great  things.  The 
neisukes — originally  a  kind  of  toggle  for  the  medicine-box  or  tobacco- 
pouch,  carved  out  of  wood  or  ivory— are  often  marvels  of  minute- 
ness, and  alive  with  a  keen  sense  of  humour  and  the  grotesque. 
The  Japanese  weakness  in  sculpture  is  no  mere  accident.  It  results 
from  a  whole  mental  attitude,  from  the  habit  of  looking  at  nature 
rather  than  at  man, — a  habit  itself  rooted  in  that  impersonality  on 
which  Mr.  Percival  Lowell  has  laid  so  much  stress  as  a  Far-Eastern 
characteristic. 

Japan's  most  famous  sculptor  was  Hidari  Jingoro,  born  in  A.D. 
1594.  The  two  elephants  and  the  sleeping  cat  in  the  mortuary 
shrine  of  Ieyasu  at  Nikko  are  among  the  best-known  productions 
of  his  chisel.  He  died  in  1634,  leaving  a  flourishing  school  and 
a  reputation  around  which  legend  soon  began  to  busy  itself.  A 
horse  which  he  had  carved  as  an  ex-voto  used,  it  is  averred,  to 
leave  its  wooden  tablet  at  night,  and  go  down  to  the  meadow  to 
graze.  On  one  occasion  the  artist,  having  seen  a  frail  beauty  in 
the  street,  became  so  enamoured  that  on  getting  home  he  set  about 
carving  her  statue ;  and  between  the  folds  of  the  statue's  robe  he 
placed  a  mirror,  which  the  girl  had  let  drop  and  which  he  had 
picked  up.  Thereupon  the  statue,  Galatea-like,  came  to  life,  and 
the  two  lovers  were  made  supremely  happy.  Now  for  the  charac- 
teristically Japanese  turn  given  to  the  tale.  The  times  were 
stormy,  and  it  fell  out  that  the  life  of  the  daughter  of  the  artist's 
lord  had  to  be  sacrificed.  The  artist  instantly  cut  off  this  living 
statue's  head  and  sent  it  to  the  enemy,  who  were  taken  in  by  the 
ruse  which  his  loyalty  had  prompted.  But  a  servant  of  his  lord's, 
also  deceived,  and  believing  that  Hidari  Jingoro  had  really 
killed  their  lord's  daughter,  took  his  sword  and  cut  off  the  sculp- 
tor's right  hand.  Hence  the  name  of  Hidari  Jingoro,  that  is, 
"left-handed  Jingoro."     Probably  Jingoro's  left-handedness,  which 


Cats.  85 

undoubtedly  gave  him  his  nickname  of  Hidari,  also  suggested  the 
legend. 

Since  1892,  when  the  first  bronze  statue  was  set  up  in  Tokyo 
in  front  of  the  Shokonsha  temple,  that  ancient  European  method 
of  commemorating  departed  and  even  living  worth  has  gradually 
come  into  vogue.  Not  only  so,  but  the  friezes  of  public  buildings 
now  begin  to  be  adorned  with  Cupids  of  a  Japanese  cast  of 
countenance,  slant-eyed  Goddesses  of  Poetry  and  Agriculture,  etc., 
etc.  It  is  all  very  strange  and — very  ugly.  Pity  that  the  success- 
ful adopters  of  an  alien  civilisation  should  not  have  had  the  sense 
to  stop  short  at  such  incongruous  superficialities  ! 

Books  Recommended.  Brinkley's  Japan  and  China,  Vol.  VII.  passim.  Huish's 
Japan  and  its  Art,  Chap.  XIII. —  The  Art  Carvings  cf  Japan,  by  G.  A.  Audsley  and 
M.  Tomkinson. 

Cats.  As  one  of  the  first  questions  asked  by  every  observant 
traveller  landing  at  Yokohama  refers  to  the  tailless,  or  more  proper- 
ly short-tailed,  Japanese  cats,  let  it  be  known  that  the  peculiarity 
is  a  natural  one.  The  bones  are  all  there,  but  not  normally 
developed  ;  hence  the  atrophied  appearance  of  the  tail.  It  is  true, 
however,  that  the  habit  of  seeing  only  tailless  cats  has  engendered 
such  a  prejudice  in  their  favour  that,  should  a  litter  chance  to  be 
born  with  one  long-tailed  kitten,  somebody  will  generally  take 
upon  himself  to  chop  the  tail  off  to  a  respectable  shortness.  The 
popular  objection  to  long-tailed  cats  has  doubtless  been  augmented 
by  the  snaky  aspect  of  a  normal  cat's  tail  when  waved  from 
side  to  side,  and  by  the  superstition  that  there  exist  cats  furnished 
with  one  or  several  long  tails,  and  possessing  the  power  of  bewitch- 
ing human  beings  after  the  manner  of  foxes  and  badgers  (see 
Article  on  Demoniacal  Possession).  Note,  however,  that  the 
objection  to  long-tailed  cats  does  not  prevail  throughout  the 
country.  It  is  confined  to  certain  provinces.  Another  supersti- 
tion calling  for  notice  is  the  lucky  character  attributed  by  seafaring 
men  to  tortoise-shell  tom-cats.  The  master  of  a  junk  will  pay 
almost  any  price  to  obtain  one,  and  thus  secure  immunity  from 
shipwreck.     In  this  case,  it  is  probably  the  rarity  of  the  animal 


86  Charms  and  Sacred  Pictures. 

that  has  given  it  its  fictitious  value ;  for  though  tortoise-shell  cats 
exist  in  considerable  numbers,  they  are — for  some  unexplained 
reason — almost  all  tabbies. 

Among  Europeans  an  irreverent  person  may  sometimes  be 
heard  to  describe  an  ugly,  cross  old  woman  as  a  cat.  In  Japan, 
the  land  of  topsy-turvydom,  that  nickname  is  colloquially  applied 
to  the  youngest  and  most  attractive, — the  singing-girls.  The 
reason  is  that  singing  girls  bewitch  men  with  their  artful,  sham 
coy  ways,  like  the  magic  cats  alluded  to  above.  For  a  similar 
reason,  fair  women  one  degree  lower  still  in  the  scale  are  called 
foxes,  while  the  male  buffoons  or  jesters,  whose  talents  help  to 
make  the  fun  fast  and  furious  at  a  spree,  are  termed  badgers. 

Cha-no-yu.     See  Tea  Ceremonies. 
Characteristics.     See  Japanese  People. 

Charms  and  Sacred  Pictures  are  sold  for  a  few  farthings 
at  hundreds  of  temples  throughout  the  land.  The  custom  seems  to 
have  originated  with  the  Buddhists,  who  already  on  the  continent 
of  Asia  and  before  the  introduction  of  Shaka  Muni's  religion  into 
Japan,  had  developed  all  the  adjuncts  of  popular  piety  and 
superstition.  But  the  Shinto  priests  have  taken  the  custom  up,  not 
disdaining  in  these  hard  times  to  turn  an  honest  penny  wherever 
possible. 

The  commonest  Japanese  charms  are  scraps  of  paper  with  an 
inscription  for  the  reversal  of  bad  luck,  the  attainment  of  good 
luck,  protection  from  the  perils  of  the  sea  or  of  war,  from  fire,  from 
sickness,  and  in  child-bearing.  Others  are  long  strips  inscribed 
with  the  name  of  some  god,  or  a  brief  invocation,  to  which  is 
occasionally  added  the  picture  of  the  supernatural  being  invoked, — 
the  fox-god,  for  instance,  or  the  holy  crows  of  Kumano,*  or  the 
sacred  dog  of  Mitsumine  who  is  esteemed  a  powerful  protector  . 
against  robbers.  This  kind  is  to  be  seen  pasted  vertically  on  the 
outside  of  the  houses  of  the  poor  in  almost  every  province  of  the 
empire,  while  well-to-do  families  keep  them  inside  the  house,  as 

*  See  Murray's  Handbook/or  Japan,  7th  edition,  page  390. 


Chauvinism.  87 

part  of  the  furniture  of  the  domestic  altar.  To  procure  such  charms 
is  always  one  object  of  the  pilgrimages  to  sacred  mountains  and 
famous  shrines,  still  so  popular  with  those  classes  of  society 
which  are  not  yet  fully  imbued  with  European  twentieth  century 
notions.  Coloured  prints  of  the  shrine  visited  are  generally 
purchased  at  the  same  time,  and  treasured  as  mementoes  of  the 
pilgrimage.  There  is  another  very  popular  kind,  which  can  be 
made  at  homer  consisting  of  the  imprint  of  a  hand, — generally 
a  child's  hand.  It  is  obtained  by  first  wetting  the  hand  with  ink, 
and  then  applying  it  to  a  sheet  of  paper,  and  is  believed  to  avert 
malign  influences.  Besides  these  paper  charms,  there  exist  several 
other  sorts.  At  Ise,  for  example,  sacred  medals  are  for  sale ;  but 
we  suspect  that  these  owe  their  origin  to  European  influence. 
Another  Ise  charm,  which  is  genuinely  native,  consists  of  fragments 
of  the  temples  themselves  ;  for  when  these  temples  are  hewn  down 
every  twenty  years  in  accordance  with  immemorial  usage,  prepar- 
atory to  the  erection  of  new  ones,  the  wood  is  all  chopped  up  into 
tiny  splinters  which  are  carried  away  by  innumerable  devotees, 
The  food  offered  to  the  gods  is  also  sold  to  pilgrims  as  a  charm, 
both  at  Ise  and  elsewhere.  Then,  too,  there  are  miniature  editions 
of  various  sutras,  microscopic  images  of  the  Gods  of  Luck  carved 
out  of  rice-grains,  facsimiles  of  Buddha's  footprint  on  certain  sacred 
stones,  and  in  fine  such  a  multifarious  assortment  of  "objects  of 
bigotry  and  virtue"  that  memory  and  space  alike  fail  us  in  the 
attempt  to  enumerate  them.  One  charm- — generally  a  thin  oblong 
slab  of  wood  inscribed  with  the  name  of  the  great  shrine  of  Narita 
— is  constantly  worn  by  members  of  the  middle  and  lower  classes 
in  Tokyo,  being  hung  round  the  neck  by  a  string  next  to  the  skin. 
It  is  supposed  to  protect  the  wearer  against  accidents.  Women 
often  wear  it  over  their  sash.  Children  habitually  have  a  bright-  . 
coloured  "charm-bag"  hung  at  their  side,  as  described  in  the 
Article  on  Dress. 

Chauvinism.     Japan  has  not  escaped,  in  these  latter  days,  the 
wave  of  "jingo"*  feeling  that  has  swept  round  the  world,  making 

*Says  a  Monsieur  Felix  Martin,  author  of  Le  yapon    Vrai  (!)  :  "  Ce  mot  me  semble 


88  Chauvinism. 

the  nations  like  each  other  less  as  they  come  to  know  each  other 
better.  For  a  few  years,  no  doubt,  "foreign"  and  "good"  were 
synonymous  terms ;  the  Japanese  sat  at  the  feet  of  the  Western 
Gamaliel,  and  treasured  his  slightest  utterances  as  pearls  of  great 
price.  This  state  of  things  passed  away  suddenly  in  1887.  The 
feeling  now  is,  "  Japan  for  the  Japanese,  and  let  it  be  a  Japanese 
Japan."  Foreign  employes  have  been  dismissed,  and  replaced  by 
natives.  In  the  Diet — it  was  in  the  Upper  House,  too — the 
metrical  system  of  weights  and  measures  has  been  opposed  on  the 
ground  that  the  introduction  of  a  foreign  standard  would  be  a  blot 
on  the  national  escutcheon.  Only  four  or  five  years  ago,  the 
Tokyo  Chamber  of  Commerce  resolved  that  the  Roman  nomen- 
clature hitherto  used  on  the  silver  and  copper  pieces  should  be 
dropped  from  the  new  coinage.  Not  only  has  the  national  costume 
come  back  again  to  a  considerable  extent,  and  interest  in  the  native 
sports  and  the  national  antiquities  been  revived  : — the  peculiar 
feature  of  the  present  situation  is  that  the  Japanese  are  determined 
to  beat  us  on  our  own  ground  and  with  our  own  weapons.  Japan 
is  to  engross  the  trade  of  the  Pacific,  and  to  be  the  leader  of  Asia 
in  modern  warfare  and  diplomacy.  According  to  some,  she  will 
remodel  philosophy  ;  for  Europe  is  incurably  superstitious,  Japan 
essentially  reasonable.  Mr.  Inagaki,  a  well-known  publicist  who 
has  lived  abroad  and  even  published  a  book  in  English,  has  written 
essays  to  demonstrate  Japan's  special  fitness  for  originating  new 
and  important  views  on  international  law.  Meanwhile,  the  foreign 
missionaries  are  being  abandoned  as  old-fashioned  by  their 
quondam  converts.     The  Rev.  Mr.  Kozaki  believes  that  Japan  is 

the  place  where  "  the  world-problem  of  Christianity  is being 

gradually  solved  ;  "  and  numbers  of  leading  Japanese  Christians 
hold  with  Mr.  Yokoi  that  Japanese  Christianity  must  develop 
a  superior  theology  of  its  own,  to  which  European  Christianity  will 
in  the  future  look  for  support.     Politicians  take  the  same  line, 

avoir  ete  emprunte  par  les  Yankees  au  vocabulaire  du  Nippon;  il  ne  serait  autre  que  le 
nomde  I'imperatrice  Jingo,  femme  vaillante  et  patriote,  qui  fit,  au  troisieme  siecle  avant 
notre  ere,  la  conquete  de  la  Coree."  (!!!) — For  the  bold  female  in  qnestion,  see  Article 
on  History. 


Cherry-blossom.  89 

mutatis  mutandis.  They  point  to  the  weary  secular  struggles,  the 
bloody  rebellions,  through  which  the  West  has  slowly  won  its  way 
to  constitutional  government,  whereas  in  Japan  what  has  there 
been  ?  A  grateful  and  intelligent  people  accepting  the  free  gift  of 
self-government  from  a  wise  and  benevolent  Sovereign.  Further- 
more it  has  been  discovered  that  courage,  patriotism,  and  loyalty 
are  specifically  Japanese  virtues,  or  that — at  the  least— Japanese 
courage,  Japanese  loyalty,  and  Japanese  patriotism  glow  with  an 
incomparably  brighter  radiance  than  the  qualities  called  by  those 
same  names  in  inferior  countries, — England,  for  instance,  France, 
Germany,  or  America. 

Dai  Nihon  Banzai!  "  Long  live  Great  Japan !  "  Japan  is  a 
young  nation — at  least  a  rejuvenated  nation — and  youth  will  be 
self-confident.     The  greybeards  must  not  wish  it  otherwise. 

Book  recommended.     Evolution  of  the  Japanese,  by  S.  L.  Gulick,  pp.  48-51. 

Cherry-blossom.  The  Japanese  cherry-tree  {Primus  pseudo- 
cerasus,  Lindley)  is  cultivated,  not  for  its  fruit,  but  for  its  blossom, 
which  has  long  been  to  Japan  what  the  rose  is  to  Western  nations. 
Poets  have  sung  it  for  over  a  millennium  past,  and  crowds  still  pour 
forth  every  year,  as  spring  comes  round,  to  the  chief  places  where 
avenues  of  it  seem  to  fill  the  air  with  clouds  of  the  most  delicate 
pink.  Even  patriotism  has  adopted  it,  in  contradistinction  to  the 
plum-blossom,  which  is  believed  to  be  of  Chinese  origin — not,  like 
the  cherry-tree,  a  true  native  of  Japan.  The  poet  Motoori 
exclaims  : 

Shikishima  no 

Yamato-gokoro  wo 
Hi  to  towaba, 
Asa-hi  ni  niou 
Yama-zakura-bana  ! 

which,  being  interpreted,  signifies  "  If  one  should  enquire  of  you 
concerning  the  spirit  of  a  true  Japanese,  point  to  the  wild  cherry- 
blossom  shining  in  the  sun." — Again  a  Japanese  proverb  says  : 
"  The  cherry  is  first  among  flowers,  as  the  warrior  is  first  among 
men." 


go  Chess. 

The  single  blossom  variety  is  generally  at  its  best  about  the  7th 
April,  coming  out  before  the  leaves  ;  the  clustering  double  variety 
follows  a  little  later.  The  places  best  worth  visiting  in  Tokyo  are 
Ueno  Park,  Shiba  Park,  the  long  avenue  of  Mukojima,  and,  in  the 
neighbouring  country,  Asuka-yama  and  Koganei.  But  the  most 
famous  spots  for  cherry-blossom  in  all  Japan  are  Yoshino  amid  the 
mountains  of  Yamato,  and  Arashi-yama  near  Kyoto. 

The  Japanese  are  fond  of  preserving  cherry-blossoms  in  salt,  and 
making  a  kind  of  tea  out  of  them.  The  fragrance  of  this  infusion 
is  delicious,  but  its  taste  a  bitter  deception. 

Chess.  Japanese  chess  (shogi)  was  introduced  from  China 
centuries  ago ;  and  though  it  has  diverged  to  some  extent  from  its 
prototype,  the  two  games  still  have  a  feature  in  common 
distinguishing  them  from  all  other  varieties.  It  is  this.  The  rank 
on  which  the  pawns  are  usually  posted  is  occupied  by  only  two 
pieces,  called  p'ao  by  the  Chinese,  and  hisha  and  kaku  by  the 
Japanese.  Also,  on  either  side  of  the  king  are  two  pieces,  called 
ssu  in  the  Chinese,  and  kin  in  the  Japanese  game.  These  perform 
the  duty  imposed  on  the  ferz  or  visir  of  the  Persian  Shalranj, 
which  was  the  equivalent  of  the  modern  queen.  Therefore,  no 
queen  or  piece  of  similar  attributes  appears  in  either  Chinese  or 
Japanese  chess.  There  are  eighty-one  squares  on  the  Japanese 
board,  and  the  game  is  played  with  twenty  pieces  on  each  side, 
distinguished,  not  by  shape  or  colour,  but  by  the  ideographs  upon 
them.  Though  the  movements  of  the  pieces  resemble  in  most  res- 
pects those  followed  in  the  European  game,  there  are  certain 
ramifications  unknown  to  the  latter.  The  most  important  ot 
these  are  the  employment  of  the  pieces  captured  from  the 
adversary  to  strengthen  one's  own  game,  and  the  comparative 
facility  with  which  the  minor  pieces  can  attain  to  higher  rank. 

Chess  is  understood  by  all  classes  in  Japan.  The  very  coolies 
at  the  corners  of  the  streets  improvise  out  of  almost  anything 
around  them  materials  with  which  to  play,  and  thus  while  away 
the  tedium  of  waiting  for  employment.     But  it  is  comparatively 


Chess. 


9i 


little  patronised  by  the  educated  classes,  who  hold  its  rival  Go  in 
much  higher  esteem. 

The  following  is  a  diagram  of  the  board  : — 


£ 

c 

1 

3 

> 

5 

p 

p 
3 

3 

Pn 

ci 
"33 

ci 
1 

0 

c 

3 

5 

s 

2 

!    ■ 

3 

P=H 

1 

2 

1 

1 £ 

!  fe 

10 

1  £    i 
1 

2 

9  1 

B      i 

*      1                                                 !      r3 

6 

Fu 
Hisha 

Keima 

fed 

'3 

fed 

< 
2 

c  ! 

3 

1   •- 

0  is  the  king,  /te/;?2tf  the  knight,  hisha  the  rook,  and  kaku  the 
bishop, — or  pieces  having  movements  like  them.  Fu  is  the  pawn. 
The  movements  of  the  yari  also  resemble  those  of  the  rook,  but 
are  confined  to  the  single  rank  on  which  it  stands.  Gin  (silver) 
and  kin  (gold)  are  not  found  in  Western  chess.  Gin  moves  one 
square  diagonally  at  a  time,  also  one  square  forward.  If  removed 
from  its  original  position,  it  can  retreat  one  square  diagonally 
only.  The  kin,  besides  having  similar  movements,  has  also  the 
power  of  moving  one  square  on  each  side  of  itself,  but  it  cannot 
return  diagonally.  The  fu  advances  one  square  forward,  and 
captures  as  it  moves.  When  any  piece  moves  into  the  adversary's 
third  row,  it  may  become  a  kin,  in  the  same  way  as  queening  is 
effected  in  our  game.     This  is  indicated  by  turning  the  piece  over. 


92  Children. 

Every  piece  so  promoted  loses  its  original  character,  except  the 
his  ha  and  kaku  to  which  the  movements  of  the  kin  are  added. 
As  already  indicated,  a  captured  piece  may  be  employed  at  any 
time  for  either  attack  or  defence.  To  checkmate  with  the  fu  is 
a  thing  vetoed — or  at  least  considered  "  bad  form  " — in  this  non- 
democratic  game,  neither  is  stale-mate  permissible  in  Japanese 
chess.  You  wait  until  the  adversary  makes  a  move  which  admits 
of  free  action  on  your  part.  The  object  of  the  game  is,  as  with 
us,  to  checkmate  the  king. 

Books  recommended.     Das  Japanischc  Sckachspiel,  by  V.  Holtz,  and  A  Manual 
of  Chinese  Chess,  by  W.  H.  Wilkinson. 

Children.  Japan  has  been  called  "a  paradise  of  babies." 
The  babies  are  indeed  generally  so  good  as  to  help  to  make  it 
a  paradise  for  adults.  They  are  well-mannered  from  the  cradle, 
and  the  boys  in  particular  are  perfectly  free  from  that  gawky 
shyness  which  makes  many  English  boys,  when  in  company,  such 
afflictions  both  to  others  and  to  themselves.  Pity  only  that  a  little 
later  they  are  apt  to  deteriorate,  the  Japanese  young  man  being  less 
attractive  than  his  eight  or  ten-year-old  brother, — becoming  self- 
conscious,  self-important,  sometimes  intrusive. 

The  late  Mrs.  Chaplin- Ayrton  tried  to  explain  the  goodness  of 
Japanese  children  by  a  reference  to  the  furnitureless  condition  of 
Japanese  houses.  There  is  nothing,  she  said,  for  them  to  wish 
to  break,  nothing  for  them  to  be  told  not  to  touch.  This  is 
ingenious.  But  may  we  not  more  simply  attribute  the  pleasing 
fact  partly  to  the  less  robust  health  of  the  Japanese,  which  results 
in  a  scantier  supply  of  animal  spirits  ?  In  any  case,  children's 
pretty  ways  and  children's  games  add  much  to  the  picturesque- 
ness  of  Japanese  life.  Nothing  perhaps  gives  the  streets  a  more 
peculiar  aspect  than  the  quaint  custom  which  obtains  among  the 
lower  classes  of  strapping  the  babies  on  to  the  back  of  their  slightly 
older  brothers  and  sisters,  so  that  the  juvenile  population  seems 
to  consist  of  a  new  species  of  Siamese  twins.  On  the  3rd  March 
every  doll-shop  in  Tokyo,  Kyoto,    and    the  other    large  cities  is 


Children.  93 

gaily  decked  with  what  are  called  0  Hina  Sama, — tiny  models 
both  of  people  and  of  things,  the  whole  Japanese  Court  in 
miniature.  This  is  the  great  yearly  holiday  of  all  the  little  girls. 
The  boys'  holiday  takes  place  on  the  5  th  May,  when  the  towns 
and  villages  are  adorned  with  gigantic  paper  or  cotton  carps,  floating 
in  the  air  from  poles,  after  the  manner  of  flags.  The  idea  is  that 
as  the  carp  swims  up  the  river  against  the  current,  so  will  the  sturdy 
boy,  overcoming  all  obstacles,  make  his  way  in  the  world  and 
rise  to  fame  and  fortune. 

The  unpleasant  appearance  of  some  Japanese  children's  heads 
is  simply  due  to  a  form  of  eczema.  The  ailment  is  one  by  no 
means  unknown  in  Europe,  and  is  easily  curable  in  a  week.  But 
as  popular  superstition  invests  these  scabby  heads  with  a  health- 
giving  influence  in  later  life,  no  attempt  is  made  to  cure  them. 
Probably  shaving  with  dirty  razors  has  something  to  do  with  the 
disease ;  for  it  generally  ceases  when  shaving  stops,  and  has 
noticeably  •  diminished  since  the  foreign  custom  of  allowing 
children's  hair  to  grow  has  begun  to  gain  ground.  The  Japanese 
custom  is  to  shave  an  infant's  head  on  the  seventh  day  after 
birth,  only  a  tiny  tuft  on  the  nape  of  the  neck  being  left. 
During  the  next  five  or  six  years,  the  mother  may  give  rein  to 
her  fancy  in  the  matter  of  shaving  her  little  one's  head.  Hence 
the  various  styles  which  we  see  around  us.  Shaving  is  left  off 
when  a  child  goes  to  school,  instead  of,  as  among  Europeans, 
generally  commencing  when  he  quits  it.  The  Japanese  lad's  chin 
does  not  begin  to  sport  a  few  hairs  for  several  years  later.  Japanese 
infants  are  not  weaned  till  they  are  two  or  three,  sometimes  not  till 
they  are  five  years  old.  This  is  doubtless  one  cause  of  the  rapid 
ageing  of  the  mothers. 

European  parents  may  feel  at  ease  about  their  little  ones' 
chance  of  health  in  this  country.  Medical  authorities  declare  the 
mortality  among  children  of  European  race  in  Japan  to  be 
exceptionally  low. 

Book  recommended.  Japanese  Girls  and  Women,  by  Miss  A.  M.  Bacon,  especially 
Chap.  I. 


94  Clans. 

Christianity  in  Japan.     See  Missions. 

Clans.  This  is  the  usual  English  translation  of  the  Japanese 
word  han  (||^)  which  may  better  be  rendered  "Daimiate,"  that 
is,  the  territory  and  personal  followers  of  a  Daimyo,  or  territorial 
noble  in  feudal  Japan.  The  soldier-gentry  of  a  Japanese  Daimiate 
differed  from  the  Highland  clans  in  the  fact  that  all  the  members 
did  not  claim  a  common  origin  or  use  the  same  surname ;  but 
they  were  equally  bound  to  their  lord  by  ties  of  love  and  implicit 
obedience,  and  to  each  other  by  a  feeling  of  brotherhood.  This 
feeling  has  survived  the  abolition  of  feudalism  in  1871.  Ever 
since  that  time,  the  members  of  the  four  great  Daimiates  of 
Satsuma,  Choshu,  Tosa,  and  Hizen  have  practically  "run"  the 
government  of  Japan.  Her  greatest  modern  statesman,  ltd,  her 
best-known  minister  of  foreign  affairs,  Inoue,  and  Yamagata,  and 
Aoki,  and  Katsura  are  all  Choshu  men,  while  such  salient  names 
as  Oyama,  Matsukata,  Yamamoto,  and  Kawamura,  with  more  or 
less  the  whole  navy,  belong  to  Satsuma. 

The  student  of  Japanese  politics  who  bears  this  fact  in  mind, 
will  find  many  things  become  clear  to  him  which  before  seemed 
complicated  and  illogical.  Political  questions  are  not  necessarily 
questions  of  principle.  They  may  simply  be  questions  of  personal 
or  local  interest.  The  present  paramount  influence  of  the  four 
Daimiates  of  Satsuma,  Choshu,  Tosa,  and  Hizen  is  partly  an  inheri- 
tance from  olden  times,  partly  the  result  of  the  share  which  they 
took  in  restoring  the  Mikado  to  his  position  as  autocrat  of  the 
Empire  in  the  revolution  of  1868.  The  two  strongest  of  the  four 
are  Satsuma  and  Choshu,  whence  the  term  Sat-Cho,  used  to  denote 
their  combination ;  for  in  Japanese  there  is  no  vulgarity  in  cutting 
off  the  tails  of  words.  On  the  contrary,  to  do  so  is  considered  an 
elegant  imitation  of  the  Chinese  style,  which  is  nothing  if  not  terse. 
The  Satsuma  men  are  credited  with  courage,  the  Choshu  men  with 
sagacity.  The  former  are  soldiers  and  sailors,  men  of  dash  and 
daring ;  the  latter  are  diplomats  and  able  administrators.  Mean- 
while,  the   aim  of   modern  Parliamentarians   is   to  pull   down  all 


Climate.  95 

that  remains  of  the  clan  system,  and  to  substitute  party  government 
in  its  stead.     Their  success  is  doubtless  only  a  question  of  time. 

Classes  of  Society.  Japanese  mankind  was  formerly  divided 
into  four  classes, — the  Samurai,  or  warrior-gentry  (of  whom  the 
Daimyos  were  the  leaders),  the  peasantry,  the  artisans,  and  the 
tradespeople.  Notice  the  place  in  which  commerce  stood,  at  the 
very  bottom  of  the  scale,  below  the  very  tillage  of  the  soil.  Traces 
of  this  contumely  have  survived  modern  changes ;  for  men 
naturally  become  what  the  world  holds  them  to  be  : — the  hucksters 
or  traders  (we  will  not  dignify  them  with  the  name  of  merchants) 
were  a  degraded  class  in  Old  Japan,  and  degraded  their  business 
morals  remain,  which  is  the  principal  cause  of  the  difficulties 
experienced  by  European  merchants  in  dealing  with  them. 

After  the  revolution  a  change  was  made  in  the  classification  of 
society,  and  three  orders  are  now  established  by  law,  —  the 
nobility  (kwazoku),  gentry  (shiznku),  and  common  people 
(heimin).  The  two  former  combined  constitute  five  per  cent.,  the 
common  people  ninety-five  per  cent.,  of  the  entire  population. 
Some  have  used  the  word  "  caste  "  to  denote  these  divisions  ;  but 
the  term  is  inappropriate,  as  there  exists  no  impassable  barrier 
between  the  different  classes,  nor  yet  anything  approaching  to 
Indian  caste  prejudice.  The  feeling  only  resembles  that  to  which 
we  are  accustomed  in  England,  if  indeed  it  is  as  strong. 

Japanese  official  regulations  tolerate  no  subterfuges  in  matters  of 
personal  identity.  Each  citizen  is  required  to  nail  up  over  his  door 
a  wooden  ticket  inscribed  with  his  name  and  qua! it}-.  Thus  : 
"  District  of  Azabu,  Upper  Timber  Street,  No.  8,  a  Commoner 
of  the  Prefecture  of  Shizuoka,  So-and-So  "  (the  surname  followed 
by  the  personal  name). 

See  also  Article  on  Eta. 

Climate.  The  exaggerated  estimation  in  which  the  climate 
of  Japan  is  held  by  many  of  those  who  have  had  no  experience  of 
it  often  prepares  a  bitter  disappointment  for  visitors,  who  find    a 


g6  Climate.. 

climate  far  wetter  than  that  of  England  and  subject  to  greater 
extremes  of  temperature.  It  should  be  added,  on  the  other  hand, 
that  it  also  has  more  fine  days,*  and  that  the  fine  days  which  it 
has  are  incomparably  finer  and  more  inspiriting  than  the  feeble, 
misty  incertitudes  that  pass  for  fine  weather  among  the  natives  of 
Great  Britain. 

The  best  season  is  the  autumn.  From  the  latter  part  of  October 
to  the  end  of  the  year,  the  sky  is  generally  clear  and  the 
atmosphere  still,  while  during  a  portion  of  that  time  (November), 
the  forests  display  glorious  tints  of  red  and  gold,  surpassed  only  in 
Canada  and  the  United  States.  During  January,  February,  and 
March,  snow  occasionally  falls,  but  it  rarely  lies  longer  than  a  day 
or  two.  The  spring  is  trying,  on  account  of  the  wet  spells  and  the 
frequent  high  winds,  which  often  seriously  interfere  with  the 
enjoyment  of  the  cherry,  wistaria,  peony,  and  other  flowers,  in 
which  the  Japanese  take  such  pride.  True,  the  rain  is  always 
pronounced  exceptional.  Never,  it  is  alleged,  was  so  wet  a  season 
known  before,  properly  conducted  years  admitting  of  no  rain  but 
in  June  and  the  first  week  or  two  of  July — the  "  rainy  season  " 
(fiyiibai)  duly  provided  for  by  the  old  Japanese  calendar,  in  which 
not  native  only,  but  the  foreign  residents,  exhibit  a  confidence 
which  would  be  touching  were  it  not  tiresome.  Statistics^  show, 
however,  .that  from  April  on  to  July  inclusive  nearly  every  other 
day  is  rainy,  while  in  the  months  flanking  them  on  either  side — 
March  and  August — an  average  of  more  than  one  day  in  three  is 
rainy.  In  September  and  October  the  average  number  of  rainy 
days  rises  again  to  about  one  out  of  every  two.  The  superstition 
concerning  a  special  "rainy  season"  may  be  due  to  the  trying 
combination  of  dark  skies  with  the  first  heat  of  the  year,  making 
exercise  wearisome  when  not  impossible.  So  penetrating  is  then 
the  damp  that  no  care  can  succeed  in  keeping  things  from  mildew. 
Boots,  books,  cigarettes,  if  put  away  for  a  day,  appear  next  morning 

*  Tokyo  has  57.90  inches  of  yearly  rainfall,  as   against   24.76   at   Greenwich,  but  only 
141.6  rainy  days  as  against  166. 1. 
t  See  page  97. 


Climate. 


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9  8  Climate. 

covered  with  an  incipient  forest  of  whitish,  greenish  matter.  No 
match-box  can  be  got  to  strike  ;  envelopes  stick  together  without 
being  wetted  ;  gloves  must  be  kept  hermetically  sealed  in  bottles, 
or  they  will  come  out  a  mass  of  spots.  The  second  half  of  July 
and  all  August  are  hotter,  but  less  damp,  the  rain  then  falling 
rather  in  occasional  heavy  storms  which  last  from  one  to  three  days, 
and  are  followed  by  splendid  weather.  The  heat  generally  vanishes 
suddenly  about  the  second  week  in  September,  when  the  rain  sets 
in  with  renewed  energy  and  continues  about  a  month.  Such  is 
the  common  order  of  things.  But  scientific  observations  stretching 
over  a  quarter  of  a  century  past  prove  that  seasons  differ  very 
widely  from  each  other. 

One  striking  peculiarity  of  the  Japanese  climate  is  the  constant 
prevalence  of  northerly  wrinds  in  winter  and  of  southerly  winds  in 
summer.  Rooms  facing  south  are  therefore  the  best  all  the  year 
round,  escaping,  as  they  do,  the  chill  blasts  of  January  and 
February,  and  profiting  by  every  summer  breeze.  Another 
peculiarity  is  the  lateness  of  all  the  seasons,  as  compared  with 
Europe.  The  grass,  for  instance,  which  dies  down  during  the 
cold,  dry  winter  months,  does  not  become  really  fit  for  tennis- 
playing  before  the  middle  of  May.  On  the  other  hand,  winter 
is  robbed  of  the  gloom  of  short  afternoons  by  the  transparent 
clearness  of  the,  sky  down  to  the  end  of  the  year,  and  even 
throughout  January  whenever  it  is  not  actually  raining  or 
snowing.  Travellers  are  recommended  to  choose  the  late  au- 
tumn, especially  if  they  purpose  to  content  themselves  with  the 
beaten  tracks  of  Kyoto,  Tokyo,  Miyanoshita,  Nikko,  etc.,  where 
the  Europeanisation  of  hotels  has  brought  stoves  in  its  train ;  for 
stoveless  Japanese  tea-houses  are  wofully  chilly  places.  April  and 
May,  notwithstanding  a  greater  chance  of  wet  weather,  will  be 
better  for  the  wilds.  There  is  then,  too,  neither  cold  nor  heat 
to  fear.  Japanese  heat,  after  all,  is  not  tropical,  and  many  will 
enjoy  travelling  throughout  the  summer  months.  Mountain 
climbing  must  in  any  case  be  reserved  for  that  time  of  year,  as 
the  mountains  are  not  "open"  at  other  seasons, — that  is  to  say, 


Climate. 


99 


the  huts  on  them  are    deserted,    and    the    native    guides    mostly 
refuse  to  undertake  any  ascent. 

The  foregoing  description  of  the  Japanese  climate  applies  to 
the  Pacific  seaboard  of  Central  Japan,  of  which  Tokyo  is  fairly 
representative.  But  need  we  remind  the  reader  that  Japan  is  a  large 
country  ?  The  northernmost  Kuriles,  now  Japanese  territory, 
touch  Kamchatka.  The  most  southern  of  the  Luchu  Isles  is 
scarcely  a  degree  from  the  tropic  of  Cancer,  to  say  nothing  of 
newly  acquired  Formosa.  The  climate  at  the  extreme  points  of 
the  empire,  therefore,  differs  widely  from  that  of  temperate  Central 
Japan.  Speaking  generally,  the  south-eastern  slope  of  the  great 
central  range  of  the  Main  Island — the  slope  facing  the  Pacific 
Ocean  and  washed  by  the  Kuro-shio, — Gulf-Stream  of  Eastern 
Asia — has  a  much  more  moderate  climate  than  the  north-western 
slope,  which  feces  the  Sea  of  Japan,  with  Siberia  beyond.  In 
Tokyo,  on  the  Pacific  side,  what  little  snow  falls  melts  almost 
immediately.  In  the  towns  near  the  Sea  of  Japan  it  lies  three 
or  four  feet  deep  for  weeks,  and  drifts  to  a  depth  of  fifteen  to 
eighteen  feet  in  the  valleys.  But  the  summer  in  these  same  towns 
is,  like  the  Tokyo  summer,  oppressively  hot.  That  the  Tokyo 
rainfall  more  than  doubles  that  of  London  has  already  been 
stated.  But  Tokyo  is  by  no  means  one  of  the  wettest  parts 
of  the  country ;  on  the  contrary,  with  the  exception  of  the 
northern  shore  of  the  Inland  Sea  and  the  plain  of  Shinshu,  it 
is  among  the  driest.  Many  districts  show  double  its  rainfall,  the 
Hida-Etchu  mountains  and  the  south-east  coast  of  Kishu  show 
treble. 

Thunder-storms  and  sudden  showers  are  rare  in  Japan,  excepting 
in  the  mountain  districts.  Fogs,  too,  are  rare  south  of  Kinkwa-zan, 
about  3 8°  20'  North.  From  Kinkwa-zan  right  up  the  eastern  coast 
of  the  Main  Island,  all  along  Eastern  Yezo,  the  Kuriles,  and  up  as 
far  as  Behring's  Strait,  thick  fogs  prevail  during  the  calm  summer 
months, — fogs  which  are  relieved  only  by  furious  storms  in 
autumn,  and  a  wintry  sea  packed  with  ice.  The  average  number 
of  typhoons  passing  over  Japan  yearly  is  from  four  to  five,  of  which 


ioo  Cloisonne. 

Tokyo  receives  one  or  two.  The  months  liable  to  typhoons  are 
(in  a  decreasing  order  of  severity)  September,  August,  October,  and 
July.  Typhoons  have,  it  is  true,  been  experienced  as  early  as  the 
end  of  March ;  but  this  is  quite  exceptional. 

The  climate  of  Japan  is  stated  on  the  highest  medical  authority 
to  be  excellent  for  children,  less  so  for  adults,  the  large  amount 
of  moisture  rendering  it  depressing,  especially  to  persons  of  a 
nervous  temperament  and  to  consumptive  patients.  Various 
causes,  physical  and  social,  contribute  to  make  Japan  a  less  healthy 
country  for  female  residents  of  European  race  than  for  the  men. 

The  table  on  page  97  gives  the  average  of  twenty-five  years' 
observations  [1 876-1 900],  made  at  the  Central  Meteorological 
Observatory,  Tokyo. 

Japan  has  been  divided,  for  meteorological  purposes,  into  ten 
districts,  namely,  I.  Formosa  and  Luchu  ;  II.  the  southern  half 
of  Kyushu  and  Shikoku ;  III.  the  Inland  Sea;  IV.  N.  W. 
Kyushu  and  the  west  coast  of  the  Main  Island  up  to  the  latitude 
of  Kyoto ;  V.  the  Pacific  coast  from  Ise  to  Tokyo  and  the  River 
Tonegawa  ;  VI.  the  interior  provinces  to  the  north  of  the  fifth 
district,  from  Hida  on  the  west  to  Iwashiro  on  the  east ;  VII. 
the  N.  W.  coast  from  Wakasa  to  Ugo ;  VIII.  the  Pacific  coast 
from  the  River  Tonegawa  to  Sendai  and  Miyako  ;  IX.  the  province 
of  Rikuoku  and  the  western  half  of  the  Island  of  Yezo  ;  X.  the 
eastern  half  of  Yezo  and  the  Kurile  Islands. 

Books  recommended.  The  Monthly  and  Annual  Reports  of  the  Central  Meteoro- 
logical Observatory. — The  Cliinate  of  Japan,  issued  by  the  same  in  1893. —  The  China 
Ssa  Directory,  Vol.  IV. 

Cloisonne.  The  art  of  cloisonne  enamelling  has  been  known 
in  Japan  since  the  sixteenth  century  and  possibly  earlier ;  but 
it  has  only  been  brought  to  perfection  within  the  last  thirty  years. 
The  few  examples  in  the  Nijo  Palace  at  Kyoto  (erected  in  1601) 
are  small  and  extremely  rough.  Mr.  Namikawa,  the  great 
cloisonne-maker  of  Kyoto,  will  show  visitors  specimens  that  look 
antediluvian  in  roughness  and  simplicity,  but  date  back  no  further 
than  1873. 


Cloisonne.  101 

Need  it  be  explained  that  cloisonne  is  a  species  of  mosaic,  whose 
characteristic  feature  is  a  thin  network  of  copper  or  brass  soldered 
on  to  a  foundation  of  solid  metal,  the  interstices  or  cells  of  the 
network — the  cloisofis,  as  they  are  technically  called — being  then 
filled  in  with  enamel  paste  of  various  colours,  and  the  process 
completed  by  several  bakings,  rubbings,  and  polishings,  until  the 
surface  becomes  as  smooth  as  it  is  hard  ?  Enamelling  has  also 
sometimes  been  applied  in  the  same  way  to  a  porcelain  and 
even  to  a  wooden  basis  ;  but  the  best  connoisseurs  condemn  this 
innovation  as  illegitimate,  because  unsuited  to  the  nature  of  the 
material  employed. 

Kyoto,  Tokyo,  and  Nagoya  are  the  three  great  centres  of  the 
enameller's  art,  and  each  has  developed  a  special  style.  The 
difference  between  the  Tokyo  and  Kyoto  styles  consists  in  this,  that 
whereas  Namikawa  at  Kyoto  makes  no  attempt  to  hide  the  metallic 
contours  of  his  lovely  floral  and  arabesque  decorations,  his  name- 
sake at  Tokyo  prides  himself  on  rendering  the  cloisons  invisible, 
thus  producing  either  pictures  that  might  be  mistaken  for  paintings 
on  porcelain,  or  else  monochromatic  effects  also  similar  to  those 
observed  in  certain  kinds  of  old  Chinese  porcelain.  The  Tokyo 
school  performs  the  greater  tour  de  force.  But  persons  of  true 
artistic  temperament,  who  recognise  that  each  material  has  its 
natural  limitations,  to  move  gracefully  within  which  beseems  genius 
better  than  overstepping  them,  will  surely  prefer  the  productions 
of  the  Kyoto  makers,  whose  cloisonne  is  honestly  cloisonne,  but 
cloisonne  with  a  wealth  of  ornament,  an  accuracy  of  design,  a 
harmony  of  colour,  simply  miraculous  when  one  considers  the 
character  of  the  material  employed  and  the  risks  to  which 
it  is  subjected  in  the  process  of  manufacture.  These  risks 
greatly  enhance  the  price  of  cloisonne  ware,  especially  of  the 
larger  monochromatic  pieces.  The  purchaser  of  a  vase  or  plaque 
must  pay  not  only  for  it,  but  for  all  the  others  that  have 
been  inevitably  spoilt  in  the  endeavour  to  produce  one  flawless 
piece. 

The  best   Nagoya   cloisonne  differs  from  both  the  above.     The 


102  Confucianism. 

great  local  artist,  Kumeno,  takes  silver  as  the  basis  of  his  vases,  and 
this  is  beaten  up  into  the  desired  design,  with  specially  fine  effect 
in  water  and  wave  pieces.  Wires  are  also  used.  The  enamel 
put  on  is  for  the  most  part  transparent,  so  that  very  delicate  results 
are  obtained  by  the  silver  shining  through  the  glaze. 

Books  recommended.     Brinkley's    Japan  and    China,    Vol.  VII,  p.  327  et  seq.— 
The  Industries  of  Japan,  by  Dr.  J.  J.  Rein,  p.  48S  et  seq. 

Confucianism.  To  describe  in  detail  this  Chinese  system 
of  philosophy,  would  be  alien  to  the  plan  of  the  present  work. 
Suffice  it  to  say  that  Confucius  (called  by  the  Japanese  Koshi) 
abstained  from  all  metaphysical  nights  and  devotional  ecstasies. 
He  confined  himself  to  practical  details  of  morals  and  government, 
and  took  submission  to  parents  and  political  rulers  as  the  corner- 
stone of  his  system.  The  result  is  a  set  of  moral  truths — some 
would  say  truisms — of  a  very  narrow  scope,  and  of  dry  ceremonial 
observances,  political  rather  than  personal.  This  Confucian  code 
of  ethics  has  for  ages  satisfied  the  Far-Easterns  of  China,  Korea, 
and  Japan,  but  would  not  have  been  endured  for  a  moment  by  the 
more  eager,  more  speculative,  more  tender  European  mind. 

The  Confucian  Classics  consist  of  what  are  called,  in  the 
Japanese  pronunciation,  the  Shi-sho  Go-kyo,  that  is  "the  Four 
Books  and  the  Five  Canons."  The  Four  Books  are  "  The  Great 
Learning,'"'  "  The  Doctrine  of  the  Mean,"  "  The  Confucian 
Analects,"  and  "  The  Sayings  of  Mencius."  Mencius,  let  it  be 
noted,  is  by  far  the  most  attractive  of  the  Chinese  sages.  He  had 
an  epigrammatic  way  about  him  and  a  certain  sense  of  humour, 
which  give  to  many  of  his  utterances  a  strangely  Western  and 
modern  ring.  He  was  also  the  first  democrat  of  the  ancient 
East, — a  democrat  so  outspoken  as  to  have  at  one  time  suf- 
fered exclusion  from  the  libraries  of  absolutistic  Japan.  The  Five 
Canons  consist  of  "The  Book  of  Changes,"  "The  Book  of  Poetry," 
"The  Book  of  History,"  "The  Canon  of  Rites,"  and  "Spring  and 
Autumn  "  (annals  of  the  state  of  Lu  by  Confucius). 

Originally    introduced  -into   Japan    early    in  the  Christian  era, 


Confucianism. 


103 


along  with  other  products  of  Chinese  civilisation,  the  Confucian 
philosophy  lay  dormant  during  the  Middle  Ages,  the  period  of 
the  supremacy  of  Buddhism.  It  awoke  with  a  start  in  the  early 
part  of  the  seventeenth  century,  when  Ieyasu,  the  great  warrior, 
ruler,  and  patron  of  learning,  caused  the  Confucian  Classics  to 
be  printed  in  Japan  for  the  first  time.  During  the  two  hundred 
and  fifty  years  that  followed,  the  whole  intellect  of  the  country 
was  moulded  by  Confucian  ideas.  Confucius  himself  had,  it  is 
true,  laboured  for  the  establishment  of  a  centralised  monarchy. 
But  his  main  doctrine  of  unquestioning  submission  to  rulers  and 
parents  fitted  in  perfectly  with  the  feudal  ideas  of  Old  Japan  ;  and 
the  conviction  of  the  paramount  importance  of  such  subordination 
lingers  on  as  an  element  of  stability,  in  spite  of  the  recent  social 
cataclysm  which  has  involved  Japanese  Confucianism,  properly  so- 
called,  in  the  ruin  of  all  other  Japanese  institutions. 

The  most  eminent  Japanese  names  among  the  Confucianists  are 
ltd  Jinsai  and  his  son,  Ito  Tugai,  at  Kyoto ;  Arai  Hakuseki,  and 
Ogyu  Sorai  at  Yedo.  All  four  flourished  about  the  end  of  the 
seventeenth  and  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century.  They 
were  merely  expositors.  No  Japanese  had  the  originality — it 
would  have  been  hooted  down  as  impious  audacity — to  develop 
the  Confucian  system  further,  to  alter  or  amend  it.  There  are  not 
even  any  Japanese  translations  or  commentaries  worth  reading. 
The  Japanese  have,  for  the  most  part,  rested  content  with  reprint- 
ing the  text  of  the  Classics  themselves,  and  also  the  text  of  the 
principal  Chinese  commentators  (especially  that  of  Shushi,  jjfe^J*), 
pointed  with  diacritical  marks  to  facilitate  their  perusal  by  Japanese 
students.  The  Chinese  Classics  thus  edited  formed  the  chief 
vehicle  of  every  boy's  education  from  the  seventeenth  century  until 
the  remodelling  of  the  system  of  public  instruction  on  European 
lines  after  the  revolution  of  1868.  At  present  they  have  fallen  into 
almost  total  neglect,  though  phrases  and  allusions  borrowed  from 
them  still  pass  current  in  literature,  and  even  to  some  extent  in  the 
language  of  every-day  life.  Seido,.the  great  temple  of  Confucius  in 
Tokyo,  is  now  utilised  as  an  Educational  Museum. 


io4  Conventions. 

N.  B. — A  friendly  German  critic  of  the  first  edition  of  this  work  thought  Confucius 
unfairly  judged  in  the  opening  paragraph  of  the  foregoing  article.  "Confucianism 
anticipated  modern  agnosticism,  on  the  one  hand,"  said  he  -  "  on  the  other — and  this 
consideration  deserves  special  weight — it  has  formed  the  basis  of  a  social  fabric  far 
more  lasting  than  any  other  that  the  world  has  seen.  The  endurance  of  the  Papacy 
is  often  quoted  in  evidence  of  the  truth  of  Roman  Catholicism.  What  then,  of  Confuci- 
anism with  its  still  higher  antiquity?" 

There  is  much  force  in  this  objection ;  and  those  who  know  China  most  intimately 
seem  to  agree  in  attributing  her  marvellous  vitality  and  her  power  of  assimilating 
barbarous  tribes — both  those  she  conquers  and  those  that  conquer  her — to  the  fact  that 
this  great  ethical  system  has  infused  its  strength  into  the  national  life,  and  practically 
rules  the  country.  We  incline  to  agree  with  our  critic  as  much  as  with  ourselves. 
The  best  plan  may  perhaps  be  to  present  both  sides  of  a  question  which  is  too  complicated 
for  any  sweeping  assertion  about  it  to  be  wholly  true. 

Books  recommended.  Dr.  Legge's  elaborate  edition  of  The  Chinese  Classics  in  six 
large  volumes,  and  Vol.  XVI.  of  the  Sacred  Books  of  the  East,  containing  the  same 
writer's  translation  of  the  Book  of  Changes  (Yi  King). —  Confucianism,  published  by 
the  Society  for  Promoting  Christian  Knowledge,  is  a  much  briefer  manual  of  the 
subject,  in  popular  form. — The  Japanese  Confucianists  have  been  made  the  subject  of  a 
careful  study  by  Rev.  Dr.  G.  W.  Knox,  in  Vol.  XX.  Part  I.  of  the  "Asiatic  Trans- 
actions."    See  also  Aston's  History  of  Japanese  Litcrafairc . 

Conventions.  Whether  we  or  the  Japanese  be  the  more 
conventional,  might  furnish  a  nice  point  for  argument ;  but  in  any 
case  it  is  their  conventions  that  strike  us.  They  admire  certain 
flowers, — the  plum  and  cherry-blossom,  the  wistaria,  the  chrysan- 
themum, the  insignificant  "seven  herbs  of  autumn,''  and  have 
written  poems  about  these  and  a  few  others  for  centuries  ;  but  new- 
flowers,  however  beautiful,  they  will  not  admit  at  any  rate  into 
literature.  They  rave  about  the  moon ;  the  glories  and  pathos  of 
sunset  touch  no  chord  within  them.  Their  art  bristles  with 
conventions.  So  do  their  social  habits,  as  when,  in  greeting  a 
friend,  they  crave  pardon  for  rudeness  of  which  they  were  never 
guilty.  The  oddest  conventional  item  of  daily  life,  or  rather  death, 
is  their  habit  of  inventing  a  fictitious  date  for  decease.  Thus,  all 
the  world  knows  that  such  and  such  an  admiral  or  general  died  on 
Monday  morning.  Nevertheless,  he  receives  visits  on  the  Tues- 
day, is  promoted  on  the  Wednesday,  perhaps  makes  a  railway 
journey  on  the  Thursday,  and  at  last,  maybe,  receives  official 
permission  to  die  on  the  Friday  at  precisely  7.45  p.m.  This 
make-believe    is    inspired    by    the    most    practical    motives.     In 


Cormorant-fishing.  105 

former  days,  when  a  Daimyo  died  away  from  home,  he  was 
considered  a  deserter,  and  his  estates  were  forfeited  to  the  Crown. 
So,  in  the  event  of  his  being  assassinated  out-of-doors,  the  fact  was 
hushed  up  ;  he  was  put  into  his  palanquin,  carried  home,  and 
proclaimed  to  have  died  a  natural  death  there,  thus  preserving 
the  estate  to  his  heirs.  At  the  present  day,  higher  official  rank 
brings  with  it  a  larger  pension  to  the  family.  It  is,  therefore,  a 
gracious  act  on  the  part  of  Government  to  permit  the  postponement 
of  the  date  of  death  till  after  certain  honours  shall  have  been 
conferred. 

Cormorant-fishing.  This  strange  method  of  fishing  is 
mentioned  in  a  poem  found  in  the  Kojiki,  a  work  compiled  in 
A.D.  712,  while  the  poem  itself  probably  dates  from  a  far  earlier 
age.  The  custom  is  kept  up  at  the  present  day  in  various  dis- 
tricts of  Japan,  notably  on  the  River  Nagara,  near  Gifu,  in  the 
province  of  Owari. 

First  catch  your  cormorant.  "  This,"  we  are  told  by  Mr.  G.  E. 
Gregory,  in  Vol.  X.  Parti,  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions/' — "this 
the  people  do  by  placing  wooden  images  of  the  birds  in  spots 
frequented  by  them,  and  covering  the  surrounding  branches  and 
twigs  with  bird-lime,  on  settling  upon  which  they  stick  fast. 
After  having  in  this  manner  caught  one  cormorant,  they  place  it 
among  the  bushes,  instead  of  the  image,  and  thus  catch  more." 
Mr.  Gregory  further  says  that  the  fishermen  take  such  care  of  the 
birds  that  they .  provide  them  with  mosquito- nets  during  the  sum- 
mer, in  order  to  minister  to  their  comfort !  We  cannot  personally 
vouch  for  such  an  extreme  of  solicitude,  having  seen  (and  alas  ! 
smelt)  the  birds  only  during  the  cool  off-season,  which  they  .idle 
away  in  baskets  in  the  fishermen's  houses.  Cormorant-fishing 
always  takes  place  at  night  and  by  torch-light.  The  method 
pursued  is  thus  described  by  the  late  Major-General  Palmer,  R.  E., 
in  a  letter  to  the  Times,  dated  17th  July,  1889: — "There  are,  to 
begin  with,  four  men  in  each  of  the  seven  boats,  one  of  whom, 
at    the    stern,    has    no    duty    but  that  of  managing  his  craft.     In 


106  Cormorant-fishing. 

the  bow  stands  the  master,  distinguished  by  the  peculiar  hat  of  his 
rank,  and  handling  no  fewer  than  twelve  trained  birds  with  the 
surpassing  skill  and  coolness  that  have  earned  for  the  sportsmen  of 
Gifu  their  unrivalled  pre-eminence.  Amidships  is  another  fisher, 
of  the  second  grade,  who  handles  four  birds  only.  Between  them 
is  the  fourth  man,  called  kako,  from  the  bamboo  striking  instrument 
of  that  name,  with  which  he  makes  the  clatter  necessary  for  keeping 
the  birds  up  to  their  work ;  he  also  encourages  them  by  shouts 
and  cries,  looks  after  spare  apparatus,  etc.,  and  is  ready  to  give  aid 
if  required.  Each  cormorant  wears  at  the  base  of  its  neck  a  metal 
ring,*  drawn  tight  enough  to  prevent  marketable  fish  from  passing 
below  it,  but  at  the  same  time  loose  enough — for  it  is  never  removed 
— to  admit  the  smaller  prey,  which  serves  as  food.  Round  the 
body  is  a  cord,  having  attached  to  it  at  the  middle  of  the  back  a 
short  strip  of  stifnsh  whalebone,  by  which  the  great  awkward  bird 
may  be  conveniently  lowered  into  the  water  or  lifted  out  when 
at  work ;  and  to  this  whalebone  is  looped  a  thin  rein  of  spruce 
fibre,  twelve  feet  long,  and  so  far  wanting  in  pliancy  as  to 
minimize  the  chance  of  entanglement.  When  the  fishing  ground 
is  reached,  the  master  lowers  his  twelve  birds  one  by  one  into  the 
stream  and  gathers  their  reins  into  his  left  hand,  manipulating  the 
latter  thereafter  with  his  right  as  occasion  requires.  No.  2  does 
the  same  with  his  four  birds ;  the  kako  starts  in  with  his  volleys 
of  noise ;  and  forthwith  the  cormorants  set  to  at  their  work  in  the 
heartiest  and  jolliest  way,  diving  and  ducking  with  wonderful 
swiftness  as  the  astonished  fish  come  flocking  towards  the  blaze  of 
light.  The  master  is  now  the  busiest  of  men.  He  must  handle  his 
twelve  strings  so  deftly  that,  let  the  birds  dash  hither  and  thither  as 
they  will,  there  shall  be  no  impediment  or  fouling.  He  must  have 
his  eyes  everywhere  and  his  hands  following  his  eyes.  Specially 
must  he  watch  for  the  moment  when  any  of  his  flock  is  gorged, — a 
fact  generally  made  known  by  the  bird  itself,  which  then  swims 
about  in  a  foolish,  helpless  way,  with  its  head  and  swollen  neck 

*  We  believe  that  these  rings  are  generally  not  of  metal,  but  of  bone  or  whalebone. 


Cormorant-fishing.  107 

erect.  Thereupon  the  master,  shortening  in  on  that  bird,  lifts  it 
aboard,  forces  its  bill  open  with  his  left  hand,  which  still  holds  the 
rest  of  the  lines,  squeezes  out  the  fish  with  his  right,  and  starts  the 
creature  off  on  a  fresh  foray, — all  this  with  such  admirable  dexterity 
and  quickness  that  the  eleven  birds  still  bustling  about  have  scarce 
time  to  get  things  into  a  tangle,  and  in  another  moment  the  whole 
team  is  again  perfectly  in  hand. 

"  As  for  the  cormorants,  they  are  trained  when  quite  young, 
bein?  caught  in  winter  with  bird-lime  on  the  coasts  of  the  neierh- 
bouring  Owari  Gulf,  at  their  first  emigration  southward  from 
the  summer  haunts  of  the  species  on  the  northern  seaboard 
of  Japan.  Once  trained,  they  work  well  up  to  fifteen,  often 
up  to  nineteen  or  twenty,  years  of  age ;  and,  though  their 
keep  in  winter  bears  hardly  on  the  masters,  they  are  very 
precious  and  profitable  hunters  during  the  five  months'  season, 
and  well  deserve  the  great  care  that  is  lavished  upon  them. 
From  four  to  eight  good-sized  fish  for  example,  is  the  fair 
result  of  a  single  excursion  for  one  bird,  which  corresponds 
with  an  average  of  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  fish  per  cormorant 
per  hour,  or  four  hundred  and  fifty  for  the  three  hours  occupied  in 
drifting  down  the  whole  course.  Every  bird  in  a  flock  has  and 
knows  its  number ;  and  one  of  the  funniest  things  about  them  is 
the  quick-witted  jealousy  with  which  they  invariably  insist,  by  all 
that  cormorant  language  and  pantomimic  protest  can  do,  on  due 
observance  of  the  recognized  rights  belonging  to  their  individual 
numbers.  No.  1.  or  'Ichi/  is  the  doyen  of  the  corps,  the  senior 
in  years  as  well  as  rank.  His  colleagues,  according  to  their  age, 
come  after  him  in  numerical  order.  Ichi  is  the  last  to  be  put  into 
the  water  and  the  first  to  be  taken  out,  the  first  to  be  fed,  and  the 
last  to  enter  the  baskets  in  which,  when  work  is  over,  the  birds 
are  carried  from  the  boats  to  their  domicile.  Ichi,  when  aboard, 
has  the  post  of  honour  at  the  eyes  of  the  boat.  He  is  a  solemn, 
grizzled  old  fellow,  with  a  pompous,  noli  me  tangere  air  that 
is  almost  worthy  of  a  Lord  Mayor.  The  rest  have  places 
after   him,    in   succession   of  rank,    alternately    on   either    side  of 


10S  Cremation. 

the  gunwale.  If  haply,  the  lawful  order  of  precedence  be  at 
any  time  violated — if,  for  instance,  No.  5  be  put  into  the  water 
before  No.  6,  or  No.  4  be  placed  above  No.  2 — the  rumpus 
that  forthwith  arises  in  that  family  is  a  sight  to  see  and  a  sound 
to  hear. 

"  But  all  this  while  we  have  been  drifting  down,  with  the  boats 
about  us,  to  the  lower  end  of  the  course,  and  are  again  abreast  of 
Gifu,  where  the  whole  squadron  is  beached.  As  each  cormorant  is 
now  taken  out  of  the  water,  the  master  can  tell  by  its  weight 
whether  it  has  secured  enough  supper  while  engaged  in  the  hunt  ; 
failing  which,  he  makes  the  deficiency  good  by  feeding  it  with  the 
inferior  fish  of  the  catch.  At  length  all  are  ranged  in  their  due 
order,  facing  outwards,  on  the  gunwale  of  each  boat.  And  the 
sight  of  that  array  of  great  ungainly  sea-birds — shaking  themselves, 
flapping  their  wings,  gawing,  making  their  toilets,  clearing  their 
throats,  looking  about  them  with  a  stare  of  stupid  solemnity, 
and  now  and  then  indulging  in  old-maidish  tiffs  with  their 
neighbours — is  quite  the  strangest  of  its  little  class  I  have  ever 
seen,  except  perhaps  the  wonderful  penguinry  of  the  Falkland 
Islands,  whereat  a  certain  French  philosopher  is  said  to  have 
even  wept.  Finally,  the  cormorants  are  sent  off  to  bed,  and  we 
ourselves  follow  suit.'' 

Cremation.  Cremation  followed  Buddhism  into  Japan  about 
A.  D.  700,  but  never  entirely  superseded  the  older  Shinto  custom 
of  disposing  of  the  dead  by  interment.  Ludicrous  as  it  may 
appear,  cremation  was  first  discontinued  in  the  case  of  the  Mikados 
on  the  representations  of  a  fishmonger  named  Hachibei,  who 
clamoured  for  the  interment  of  the  Emperor  Go-Komei  in  1644. 
On  the  1 8th  July,  1873,  cremation  was  totally  prohibited  by  the 
Government,  whose  members  seem  to  have  had  some  confused 
notion  as  to  the  practice  being  un-European  and  therefore 
barbarous.  Having  discovered  that  far  from  being  un-European, 
cremation  was  the  goal  of  European  reformers  in  such  matters,  they 
rescinded    their   prohibition  only   twenty-two  months  later   (23rd 


Currency.  109 

May,  1875).  There  are  now  nine  cremation  grounds  in  Tokyo. 
The  charges  for  cremation  vary  from  7  yen  to  1  j-  yen  for  adults, 
and  from  3  yen  to  1  yen  for  children  under  six  years  of  age.  The 
good  priest  of  whom  we  caused  enquiry  to  be  made  on  this  point, 
said  that  poor  folks  often  came  begging  to  be  let  off  more  cheaply, 
but  that  in  these  hard  times  it  was  impossible  to  do  so. 

The  system  is  quite  simple,  wood  being  the  only  fuel  used. 
The  corpse,  enclosed  in  its  wooden  coffin,  is  thoroughly  consumed 
in  about  three  hours.  Nothing  remains  but  a  few  minute  splinters 
of  bone  and  the  teeth,  which  latter  are  preserved  and  often  sent  to 
the  great  temple  at  Koya-san.  The  ashes  are  placed  in  an  urn  and 
buried.  We  should  add  that  on  the  19th  June,  1874,  a  law  was 
passed  against  intramural  interment,  except  in  certain  special  cases. 
It  is  still  prohibited,  unless  when  the  body  has  been  cremated 
before  burial. 

Currency.  A  gold  standard  was  adopted  in  1897,  and  the 
coinage  consists  of  gold,  silver,  nickel,  and  copper.  The  chief 
circulating  medium,  however,  has  generally  been  paper.  The 
system  is  decimal,  and  the  nomenclature  as  follows  : — 

1  yen  (half-dollar)      =    100  sen. 

1  sen  (half-cent)         =    10  rin. 

1  rin  =    10  mo  (or  nion). 

1  mo  =10  shu. 

1  shu  =10  kotsit. 

Government  and  banking  accounts  do  not  take  notice  of  any 
value  smaller  than  the  rin ;  but  estimates  by  private  tradesmen 
often  descend  to  mo  and  shu,  which  are  incredibly  minute 
fractions  of  a  farthing.  No  coins  exist,  however,  to  represent 
these  Lilliputian  sums.  There  are  gold  pieces  of  20 yen,  10 yen, 
and  5  yen  ;  silver  pieces  of  50  sen  and  under,  nickel  pieces  of 
5  sen,  copper  pieces  for  lesser  values,  and  paper  for  various 
values  great  and  small,  from  1  yen  upward.  The  paper  notes 
now  in  use  are  redeemable  in  gold,  and  therefore  stand  at  par. 
The   large  oblong  brass  pieces  with   holes  in    the    middle,   ena- 


1 1  o  Currency. 

bling  them  to  be  strung  on  a  string,  are  called  temp'),  because 
coined  during  the  period  styled  Tempo  (A.  D.  1830 — 1844) 
They  are  worth  eight  rin,  but  are  now  almost  obsolete.  The 
smaller  round  coins,  also  having  holes  in  the  middle,  and 
commonly  known  to  foreigners  as  "cash,"  are  worth,  some  10  mo, 
some  15,  some  20.  No  coins  of  this  kind  are  now  issued.  The 
style  has  been  condemned  by  the  modern  Japanese,  because  not 
sanctioned  by  European  precedent.  But  what  is  there  to  consult 
in  such  matters  save  convenience  ?  And  let  him  who  has  handled 
a  thousand  coppers  thus  strung,  and  attempted  to  handle  a 
thousand  loose  ones,  speak  to  the  relative  convenience  of  the  two 
methods. 

The  Imperial  mint  is  situated  at  Osaka.  It  was  started  under 
British  auspices,  but  the  last  of  the  British  employes  left  in 
1889.  The  manufactory  of  paper  money  is  at  Tokyo,  being  carried 
on  at  an  institution  called  the  Insatsu  Kyoku,  which  well  deserves 
a  visit.  Both  the  coins  and  the  paper  notes  possess  considerable 
artistic  merit. 

In  Japan,  as  elsewhere,  financiers  have  been  engrossed  by  the 
monometallic  and  bimetallic  controversy,  the  currency  problem 
being  not  the  least  of  those  which  the  Government  has  had  to 
solve.  Forty  years  ago,  when  the  country  was  still  practically 
closed,  little  specie  was  in  actual  use,  but  there  existed  a  banking 
system  which  sustained  mercantile  credit  for  the  limited  amount 
of  internal  business  then  transacted.  Later,  paper  money  was 
extensively  employed,  and  at  one  time  suffered  great  depre- 
ciation,— as  much  as  sixty  per  cent  in  the  year  1881, — but  was 
brought  again  to  a  par  with  silver  by  the  issue  of  convertible  silver 
notes,  and  so  remained  for  over  a  decade.  The  industrial  boom 
which  followed  the  war  with  China  in  1894-5,  created  a  necessity 
for  securing  foreign  capital  to  finance  multitudinous  undertakings 
which  Japan  herself  had  not  the  means  to  carry  on  unaided. 
Thereupon  the  Government,  recognising  the  impossibility  of 
borrowing  in  the  Western  money  markets  so  long  as  Japan 
remained  on  a  silver  basis,  passed  a  bill  making  the  currency   a 


Daimyo.  1 1 1 

gold  one  in  the  ratio  of  32-J-  to  1,  or  say  2/0J  sterling  per  yen. 
The  extreme  difficulty  of  the  situation  could  scarcely  have  been 
more  strikingly  exemplified  than  by  the  circumstance  that,  in  the 
brief  interval  between  Japan's  decision  to  adopt  a  gold  standard 
and  the  putting  of  that  decision  into  effect,  the  relative  value  of 
the  two  metals  had  already  again  varied  as  much  as  five-eighths  of 
a  penny  by  the  continued  appreciation  of  gold.  Far  be  it, 
however,  from  ignoramuses  like  ourselves  to  venture  into  the 
controversial  quagmire. 

Book  recommended.     The  Coins  of 'Japan,  by  N.  G.  Munro. 

Cycle.  "  Better  fifty  years  of  Europe  than  a  cycle  of  Cathay." 
But  it  has  been  pointed  out  that  there  is,  after  all,  little  difference 
between  the  two  terms  of  the  comparison.  The  Chinese  cycle, 
which  the  Japanese  employ  for  historical  purposes,  has  but  sixty 
years  (see  Article  on  Time). 

Daimyo.  The  Daimyos  were  the  territorial  lords  or  barons  of 
feudal  Japan.  The  word  means  literally  "  great  name."  Accord- 
ingly, during  the  Middle  Ages,  warrior  chiefs  of  less  degree, 
corresponding,  as  one  might  say,  to  our  knights  or  baronets,  were 
known  by  the  correlative  title  Shomyo,  that  is,  "small  name."  But 
this  latter  fell  into  disuse.  Perhaps  it  did  not  sound  grand  enough 
to  be  welcome  to  those  who  bore  it.  Under  the  Tokugawa 
dynasty,  which  ruled  Japan  from  A.D.  1603  to  1867,  the  lowest 
Dai  my  5s  owned  land  assessed  at  ten  thousand  bales  of  rice  per 
annum,  while  the  richest  fief  of  all — that  of  Kaga— was  worth  over 
a  million  bales.  The  total  number  of  the  Daimyos  in  modern 
times  was  about  three  hundred. 

It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  Daimyos  were  not  the 
only  aristocracy  in  the  land,  though  they  were  incomparably  the 
richest  and  the  most  important.  In  the  shadow  of  the  Mikado's 
palace  at  Kyoto,  poor  but  very  proud  of  their  descent  from  gods 
and  emperors,  and  looking  down  on  the  feudal  Daimyo  aristocracy 
as   on    a    mere   set   of  military   adventurers  and  parvenus  t    lived, 


1 1 2  Dances. 

or  rather  vegetated  through  centuries,  the  Kuge,  the  legitimist 
aristocracy  of  Japan.  The  revolution  of  1868,  in  bringing  about 
the  fall  of  the  Daimyos,  at  last  gave  the  Kuge  their  opportunity. 
With  the  restoration  of  the  Mikado  to  absolute  power,  they  too 
emerged  from  obscurity  ;  and  on  the  creation  of  a  new  system 
of  ranks  and  titles  in  1884,  they  were  not  forgotten.  The  old 
Kuge  took  rank  as  new  princes,  marquises,  and  counts,  and  what 
is  more,  they  were  granted  pensions. 

Books  recommended.  The  Feudal  System  iii  JaJ>an  under  the  Tokugawa  Shdguns, 
by  J.  H.  Gubbins,  printed  in  Vol.  XV.  Part  II.  of  tbe  "Asiatic  Transactions."  Reference 
to  Mr.  Gubbins's  learned  essay  will  sbovv  that  tbe  subject  of  Daimyo  is  not  so  simple 
as  might  appear  at  first  sight. — T.  R.  H.  McClatchie's  Feudal  Mansions  of  Yedo,  in  Vol. 
VII.  Part  III.  of  the  same,  gives  interesting  details  of  the  "palaces"  in  which  the 
Daimyos  resided  while  attending  on  the  Shogun  at  Yedo. 

Dances.  Our  single  word  "  dance "  is  represented  by  two  in 
Japanese, — nmi  and  odori,  the  former  being  a  general  name  for  the 
more  ancient  and,  so  to  say,  classical  dances,  the  latter  for  such 
as  are  newer  and  more  popular.  But  the  line  between  the  two 
classes  is  hard  to  draw,  and  both  agree  in  consisting  mainly  of 
posturing.  Europeans  dance  with  their  feet, — not  to  say  their 
legs, — Japanese  mainly  with  their  arms.  The  dress,  or  rather 
undress,  of  a  European  corps  de  ballet  would  take  away  the  breath 
of  the  least  prudish  Oriental. 

One  of  the  oldest  Japanese  dances  is  the  Kagura,  which  may 
still  be  seen  in  a  degenerate  form  at  the  yearly  festival  of  almost 
any  parish  temple.  It  is  of  the  nature  of  primitive  theatricals, — 
half  dance,  half  antic  and  buffoonery, — got  up  by  the  young  men 
of  the  place,  who  appear  in  masks  and  great  bundles  of  tawdry 
clothes,  and  twirl  about  and  pursue  each  other  to  the  incessant 
tomtoming  of  a  drum  and  piping  of  a  flute.  Sometimes  a  rough 
platform  is  erected  as  a  stage,  sometimes  the  temple  itself  does 
duty  for  such.  The  original  of  the  Kagura  is  said  to  have  been  the 
dance  by  means  of  which,  soon  after  the  beginning  of  the  world,  the 
Sun-Goddess  was  lured  from  a  cavern  into  which  she  had  retired, 
thus  plunging  all  creation  in  darkness.  The  sacred  dances  at  Nara 
and   Ise  belong  to  this  category  ;   but  the  Ise   Ondo,    sometimes 


Decorations. 


"3 


mentioned  by  travellers,  is  a  later  profane  invention, — apparently 
an  adaptation  of  the  Genroku  Odori,  a  dance  that  may  still 
occasionally  be  witnessed  on  the  stage. 

The  Bon  Odori,  a  popular  dance  which  takes  place  on  certain 
days  in  summer  all  over  provincial  Japan,  is  believed  to  have  a 
Buddhist  origin,  though  its  meaning  is  far  from  clear.  The  details 
vary  from  village  to  village ;  but  the  general  feature  of  this  dance 
is  a  large  circle  or  wheel  of  posturing  peasants,  who  revolve  to  the 
notes  of  the  song  sung  and  the  flute  and  drum  played  by  a  few  of 
their  number  in  the  middle.  Kyoto  and  Tokyo,  being  too 
civilised  for  such  rustic  exercises  in  which  all  share,  do  their 
dancing  by  proxy.  There,  and  in  the  other  large  towns,  the 
dancing-girls  {geisha)  form  a  class  apart.  While  one  or  more  of 
the  girls  dance,  others  play  the  shamisen  and  sing  the  story  ;  for 
Japanese  dances  almost  always  represent  some  story,  they  are  not 
mere  arabesques.  Herein  the  intimate  connection  that  has  always 
subsisted  between  dancing  and  the  drama  finds  its  explanation, 
as  will  be  better  understood  by  reference  to  the  Article  on  the 
Thp:atre.  The  Kappore  and  the  Shishi-??iai,  or  Lion  Dance, 
are  among  those  most  often  executed  in  the  streets  by  strolling 
performers. 

The  very  newest  of  all  forms  of  dancing  in  Japan  is  of  course 
that  borrowed  from  Europe  a  few  years  ago.  Its  want  of  dignity, 
together  with  certain  disagreeable  rumours  to  which  the  unwonted 
meeting  of  the  two  sexes  has  given  rise  from  time  to  time,  have- 
caused  the  innovation  to  be  looked  at  askance  by  many  who  are 
otherwise  favourable  to  European  manners  and  customs.  A  plain- 
spoken  writer  in  an  excellent  illustrated  periodical  entitled  Fiizoku 
Gwaho,  says  that,  whereas  his  imagination  had  painted  a  civilised 
ball-room  as  a  vision  of  fairy-land,  its  reality  reminded  him  of 
nothing  so  much  as  lampreys  wriggling  up  to  the  surface  of  the 
water,  and  (passez-lui  le  mot)  fleas  hopping  out  of  a  bed. 

Decorations.  The  heraldry  of  feudal  Japan  did  not  include 
orders  of  knighthood,  or  decorations  for  military  and  other  service. 


ii4  Decorations. 

Modern  Japan  imitated  these  things  from  Europe  in  the  year 
1875.  There  are  now  six  orders  of  knighthood,  namely,  the  Order 
of  the  Chrysanthemum,  the  Order  of  the  Paulownia,  the  Order  of 
the  Rising  Sun,  the  Order  of  the  Sacred  Treasure,  the  Order  of  the 
Crown,  and  the  order  of  the  Golden  Kite.  The  Order  of  the 
Crown  is  for  ladies  only.  All  the  Orders  are  divided  into  various 
classes.  The  Grand  Cordon  of  the  Order  of  the  Chrysanthemum 
is  the  highest  honour  which  the  Japanese  Court  can  bestow.  It  is, 
therefore,  rarely  bestowed  on  any  but  royal  personages.  The 
Order  of  the  Sacred  Treasure  is  the  distinction  now  most  frequently 
conferred  on  foreign  employes  of  the  Government  for  long  and 
meritorious  service,  the  class  given  being  usually  the  third,  fourth, 
fifth,  or  sixth,  according  to  circumstances — rarely  the  second.  The 
holder  of  such  a  decoration,  down  to  the  third  class  inclusive,  is, 
even  though  he  be  a  civilian,  granted  a  military  funeral. 

We  next  come  to  the  War  Medal,  of  which  there  is  but  one  class, 
made  of  bronze  obtained  from  captured  guns.  Conformably  with 
the  usage  of  European  countries,  it  is  given  only  for  foreign  service, 
not  for  service  in  civil  war.  Those  who  helped  to  put  down 
the  Satsuma  rebellion  did  not  gain  it.  After  it  rank  the 
Civil  Medals,  distinguished  by  a  red,  a  blue,  and  a  green  ribbon 
respectively.  Then  there  is  the  Yellow  Ribbon  Medal,  conferred 
on  those  who  made  proof  of  patriotism  by  subscribing  to  the 
Coast  Defence  Fund  in  1887.  It  is  divided  into  two  classes, 
called  respectively  Gold  and  Silver.  More  recent  still  are  the 
Commemorative  Medal  of  1889  distributed  to  those  who  were 
present  at  the  proclamation  of  the  Constitution  on  the  nth 
February  of  that  year,  and  the  medal  struck  in  1894  for  those 
who  assisted  at  the  celebration  of  the  Silver  Wedding  of  Their 
Imperial  Majesties.  Of  both  these  medals  there  are  two  classes, 
— gold  for  princes,  silver  for  lesser  folk. 

The  Order  of  the  Kite,  conferred  for  military  merit  only,  is 
the  newest  of  all  the  Japanese  Decorations.  It  was  established 
on  the  nth  February,  1890,  in  commemoration  of  Jimmu  Tenno, 
the  Romulus  of  Japan. 


Demoniacal  Possession.  115 

Demoniacal  Possession.  Chinese  notions  concerning  the 
superhuman  powers  of  the  fox,  and  in  a  lesser  degree  of  the  badger 
and  the  dog,  entered  Japan  during  the  early  Middle  Ages.  One 
or  two  mentions  of  magic  foxes  occur  in  the  Uji  Shiii,  a  story- 
book of  the  eleventh  century  ;  and  since  that  time  the  belief  has 
spread  and  grown,  till  there  is  not  an  old  woman  in  the  land — 
or,  for  the  matter  of  that,  scarcely  a  man  either — who  has  not 
some  circumstantial  fox  story  to  relate  as  having  happened  to  some 
one  who  is  at  least  the  acquaintance  of  an  acquaintance.  In  1889, 
a  tale  was  widely  circulated  and  believed  of  a  fox  having  taken  the 
shape  of  a  railway  train  on  the  Tokyo- Yokohama  line.  The 
phantom  train  seemed  to  be  coming  towards  a  real  train  which 
happened  to  be  running  in  the  opposite  direction,  but  yet  never 
got  any  nearer  to  it.  The  engine-driver  of  the  real  train,  seeing 
all  his  signals  to  be  useless,  put  on  a  tremendous  speed.  The 
result  was  that  the  phantom  was  at  last  caught  up,  when,  lo  and 
behold  !  nothing  but  a  crushed  fox  was  found  beneath  the  engine- 
wheels.  Nor  has  the  twentieth  century  witnessed  any  abatement 
in  the  popular  belief.  Fox  stories — not  necessarily  vouched  for,  of 
course,  but  still  deemed  worthy  of  mention — are  related  in  the  same 
newspapers  which  chronicle  sober  facts  and  new  scientific  inventions. 
In  fact,  the  name  of  such  tales  is  legion.  More  curious  and 
interesting  is  the  power  with  which  these  demon  foxes  are  credited 
of  taking  up  their  abode  in  human  beings  in  a  manner  similar  to 
the  phenomena  of  possession  by  evil  spirits,  so  often  referred  to 
in  the  New  Testament.  Dr.  Baelz,  of  the  Imperial  University  of 
Japan,  who  has  had  special  opportunities  for  studying  such  cases 
in  the  hospital  under  his  charge,  has  kindly  communicated  to  us 
some  remarks,  of  which  the  following  is  a  resume  : — 

"Possession  by  foxes  {kitsune-lsuki)  is  a  form  of  nervous 
disorder  or  delusion,  not  uncommonly  observed  in  Japan. 
Having  entered  a  human  being,  sometimes  through  the  breast, 
more  often  through  the  space  between  the  finger-nails  and  the 
flesh,  the  fox  lives  a  life  of  his  own,  apart  from  the  proper  self 
of  the  person  who  is  harbouring  him.     There  thus  results  a  sort 


n6  Demoniacal  Possession. 

of  double  entity  or  double  consciousness.  The  person  possessed 
hears  and  understands  everything  that  the  fox  inside  says  or 
thinks ;  and  the  two  often  engage  in  a  loud  and  violent  dispute, 
the  fox  speaking  in  a  voice  altogether  different  from  that  which 
is  natural  to  the  individual.  The  only  difference  between  the 
cases  of  possession  mentioned  in  the  Bible  and  those  observed 
in  Japan  is  that  here  it  is  almost  exclusively  women  that  are 
attacked — mostly  women  of  the  lower  classes.  Among  the  predis- 
posing conditions  may  be  mentioned  a  weak  intellect,  a  superstitious 
turn  of  mind,  and  such  debilitating  diseases  as,  for  instance,  typhoid 
fever.  Possession  never  occurs  except  in  such  subjects  as  have 
heard  of  it  already,  and  believe  in  the  reality  of  its  existence. 

"-  The  explanation  of  the  disorder  is  not  so  far  to  seek  as  might 
be  supposed.  Possession  is  evidently  related  to  hysteria  and  to 
the  hypnotic  phenomena  which  physiologists  have  recently  studied 
with  so  much  care,  the  cause  of  all  alike  being  the  fact  that,  whereas 
in  healthy  persons  one  half  of  the  brain  alone  is  actively  engaged 
— in  right-handed  persons  the  left  half  of  the  brain,  and  in  left- 
handed  persons  the  right — leaving  the  other  half  to  contribute  only 
in  a  general  manner  to  the  function  of  thought,  nervous 
excitement  arouses  this  other  half,  and  the  two — one  the  organ  of 
the  usual  self,  the  other  the  organ  of  the  new  pathologically 
affected  self — are  set  over  against  each  other.  The  rationale  of 
possession  is  an  auto-suggestion,  an  idea  arising  either  with 
apparent  spontaneity  or  else  from  the  subject-matter  of  it  being 
talked  about  by  others  in  the  patient's  presence,  and  then 
overmastering  her  weak  mind  exactly  as  happens  in  hypnosis. 
In  the  same  manner,  the  idea  of  the  possibility  of  cure  will  often 
actually  effect  the  cure.  The  cure-worker  must  be  a  person  of 
strong  mind  and  power  of  will,  and  must  enjoy  the  patient's  full 
confidence.  For  this  reason  the  priests  of  the  Nichiren  sect, 
which  is  the  most  superstitious  and  bigoted  of  Japanese  Buddhist 
sects,  are  the  most  successful  expellers  of  foxes.  Occasionally  fits 
and  screams  accompany  the  exit  of  the  fox.  In  all  cases — even 
when  the  fox  leaves  quietly — great  prostration  remains  for  a  day 


Demoniacal  Possession. 


117 


or  two,  and  sometimes  the  patient  is  unconscious  of  what  has 
happened. 

"  To  mention  but  one  among  several  cases,  I  was  once  called 
in  to  a  girl  with  typhoid  fever.  She  recovered  ;  but  during  her 
convalescence,  she  heard  the  women  around  her  talk  of  another 
woman  who  had  a  fox,  and  who  would  doubtless  do  her  best  to 
pass  it  on  to  some  one  else,  in  order  to  be  rid  of  it.  At  that 
moment  the  girl  experienced  an  extraordinary  sensation.  The  fox 
had  taken  possession  of  her.  All  her  efforts  to  get  rid  of  him  were 
vain.  "  He  is  coming !  he  is  coming !  "  she  would  cry,  as  a  fit 
of  the  fox  drew  near.  "  Oh  !  what  shall  I  do?  Here  he  is  !  "  And 
then,  in  a  strange,  dry,  cracked  voice,  the  fox  would  speak,  and 
mock  his  unfortunate  hostess.  Thus  matters  continued  for  three 
weeks,  till  a  priest  of  the  Nichiren  sect  was  sent  for.  The  priest 
upbraided  the  fox  sternly.  The  fox  (always,  of  course,  speaking 
through  the  girl's  mouth)  argued  on  the  other  side.  At  last  he 
said  :  "I  am  tired  of  her.  I  ask  no  better  than  to  leave  her. 
What  will  you  give  me  for  doing  so  ?  "  The  priest  asked  what 
he  would  take.  The  fox  replied,  naming  certain  cakes  and  other 
things,  which,  said  he,  must  be  placed  before  the  altar  of  such 
and  such  a  temple,  at  4  p.m.,  on  such  a  day.  The  girl  was 
conscious  of  the  words  her  lips  were  made  to  frame,  but  was 
powerless  to  say  anything  in  her  own  person.  When  the  day 
and  hour  arrived,  the  offerings  bargained  for  were  taken  by  her 
relations  to  the  place  indicated,  and  the  fox  quitted  the  girl  at 
that  very  hour. 

"  A  curious  scene  of  a  somewhat  similar  nature  may  occasion- 
all}-  be  witnessed  at  Minobu,  the  romantically  situated  chief 
temple  of  the  Nichiren  sect,  some  two  days'  journey  from  T5kyo 
into  the  interior.  There  the  people  sit  praying  for  hours  before 
the  gigantic  statues  of  the  ferocious-looking  gods  called  Ni-6, 
which  are  fabled  to  have  been  carried  thither  from  Kamakura 
in  a  single  night  on  the  back  of  the  hero  Asaina  some  six 
hundred  years  ago.  The  devotees  sway  their  bodies  backwards 
and  forwards,  and  ceaselessly  repeat  the  same  invocation,   "  Namu 


n8  Demoniacal  Possession. 

mydhb  renge  kyb  !  Namu  mybhb  renge  kyb/"  At  last,  to  some  of  the 
more  nervous  among  them,  wearied  and  excited  as  they  are,  the 
statues'  eyes  seem  suddenly  to  start  into  life,  and  they  themselves 
rise  wildly,  feeling  a  snake,  or  maybe  a  tiger,  inside  their  body, 
this  unclean  animal  being  regarded  as  the  physical  incarnation 
of  their  sins.  Then,  with  a  cry,  the  snake  or  serpent  goes 
out  of  them,  and  they  themselves  are  left  fainting  on  the 
ground." — 

So  far  Dr.  Baelz.  His  account  may  be  supplemented  by  the 
remark  that  not  only  are  there  persons  believed  to  be  possessed 
by  foxes  (kitsune-isuki),  but  others  believed  to  possess  foxes 
(kitsune-mochi),  in  other  words,  to  be  wizards  or  witches  com- 
manding unseen  powers  of  evil  which  they  can  turn  loose  at 
will  upon  their  enemies.  The  following  extract  from  a  Japanese 
newspaper  (the  Nichi-Nichi  Shimbun  of  the  14 th  August,  1 8  9 1 ) 
may  serve  to  illustrate  this  point : — 

"  In  the  province  of  Izumo,  more  especially  in  the  western  por- 
tion, there  exists  a  peculiar  custom  called  fox-owning,  which  plays 
an  important  part  in  marriages  and  transfers  of  landed  property. 
When  a  marriage  is  being  arranged  between  persons  residing 
several  leagues  apart  and  unacquainted  with  each  other,  enquiries 
into  such  points  of  family  history  as  a  possible  taint  of  leprosy  or 
phthisis  are  subordinated  to  the  first  grand  question  :  is  or  is  not 
the  other  party  a  fox-owner  ?  To  explain  this  term,  we  may  say 
that  fox-owning  families  are  believed  to  have  living  with  them 
a  tribe  of  small,  weazle-like  foxes  to  the  number  of  seventy-five, 
called  human  foxes,  by  whom  they  are  escorted  and  protected 
wherever  they  go,  and  who  watch  over  their  fields  and  prevent 
outsiders  from  doing  them  any  damage.  Should,  however,  any 
damage  be  done  either  through  malice  or  ignorance,  the  offender 
is  at  once  possessed  by  the  fox,  who  makes  him  blurt  out  his 
crime  and  sometimes  even  procures  his  death.  So  great  is  the 
popular  fear  of  the  fox-owners  that  any  one  marrying  into  a  fox- 
owning  family,  or  buying  land  from  them,  or  failing  to  repay 
money  borrowed  from  them,  is  considered  to  be  a  fox-owner  too. 


Demoniacal  Possession. 


119 


The  fox-owners  are  avoided  as  if  they  were  snakes  or  lizards. 
Nevertheless,  no  one  ever  asks  another  point  blank  whether  or  not 
his  family  be  a  fox-owning  family  ;  for  to  do  so  might  offend  him, 
and  the  result  to  the  enquirer  might  be  a  visitation  in  the  form  of 
possession  by  a  fox.  The  subject  is  therefore  never  alluded  to 
in  the  presence  of  a  suspected  party.  All  that  is  done  is  politely 
to  avoid  him. 

"  It  should  be  noticed,  moreover,  that  there  are  permanent 
fox-owners  and  temporary  fox-owners.  The  permanent  fox-owners 
silently  search  for  families  of  a  similar  nature  to  marry  into,  and 
can  ne\er  on  any  account  intermarry  with  outsiders,  whatever  may 
be  the  inducement  in  the  shape  of  wealth  or  beauty.  Their 
situation  closely  resembles  that  of  the  pariahs  and  outcasts  of 
former  times.  But  even  the  strictest  rules  will  sometimes  be 
broken  through  by  love  which  is  a  thing  apart,  and  liaisons  will 
be  formed  between  fox-owners  and  outsiders.  When  such  an 
irremediable  misfortune  takes  place,  parents  will  renounce  even 
their  well-beloved  only  son,  and  forbid  him  to  cross  their  threshold 
for  the  rest  of  his  life.  Temporary  fox-owners  are  those  who  have 
been  expelled  from  the  family  for  buying  land  from  a  permanent 
fox-owner.  These  circumstances  conspire  to  give  security  to  the 
fox-owners  (whether  such  in  truth  or  imagination,  we  are  not  in  a 
position  to  say) ;  for  no  one  will  harm  them  by  so  much  as  a 
hair's  breadth.  Therefore  they  are  all  well-to-do ;  some  are  even 
said  to  count  among  the  most  affluent  families  in  the  province. 
The  very  poorest  people  that  have  borrowed  money  from  them 
will  strain  every  nerve  to  raise  money  to  repay  the  loan,  because 
failure  to  do  so  would  make  others  regard  them  as  fox-owners  and 
shun  them.  The  result  of  all  this  is  that  a  nervous  malady 
resembling  possession  is  much  commoner  in  this  province 
than  elsewhere,  and  that  Dr.  Shimamura,  assistant-professor 
at  the  Imperial  University,*  during  his  tour  of  inspection 
there  this  summer,  has  come  across  no  less  than  thirty-one  cases 
of  it." 

*  Assistant,  that  is,  to  Dr.   Baelz. 


120  Demoniacal  Possession. 

To  this  may  be  added  that  in  the  Oki  Islands,  oft"  the  coast  of 
Izumo,  the  superstition  is  modified  in  such  wise  that  dogs,  not 
foxes,  are  the  magic  creatures.  The  human  beings  in  league 
with  them  are  termed  inu-gami-mochi,  that  is,  "  dog-god  owners." 
When  the  spirit  of  such  a  magic  dog  goes  forth  on  an  errand 
of  mischief,  its  body  remains  behind,  growing  gradually  weaker, 
and  sometimes  dying  and  falling  to  decay.  When  this  happens, 
the  spirit,  on  its  return,  takes  up  its  abode  in  the  body  of  the 
wizard,  who  thereupon  becomes  more  powerful  than  ever.  Our 
informant  was  a  peasant  from  the  Oki  Islands, — the  best  authority 
on  such  a  point,  because  himself  a  believer  and  with  no  thesis  to 
prove. 

Oddly  enough,  we  ourselves  once  had  to  submit  to  exorcism 
at  the  hands  of  Shint5  priests.  It  was  in  the  summer  of  1879, 
the  great  cholera  year,  and  we  were  accused  by  the  authorities 
of  a  certain  village  at  which  we  desired  to  halt,  of  having 
brought  the  demon  of  cholera  with  us.  For,  true  to  human 
nature,  each  town,  each  village,  at  that  sad  season,  always 
proclaimed  itself  spotless,  while  loudly  accusing  all  its  neighbours 
of  harbouring  the  contagion.  Accordingly,  after  much  parley, 
which  took  place  in  the  drenching  rain,  with  night  approaching 
and  with  the  impossibility  of  finding  another  shelter  for  many 
miles,  some  Shinto  priests  were  sent  for.  They  arrived  in  their 
white  vestments  and  curiously  curved  hats,  and  bearing  branches 
of  trees  in  their  hands.  They  formed  in  two  lines  on  either  side 
of  the  way,  and  between  them  our  little  party  of  two  Europeans 
and  one  Japanese  servant  had  to  walk.  As  we  passed,  the  priests 
waved  the  dripping  branches  over  our  heads,  and  struck  us  on 
the  back  with  naked  swords.  After  that,  we  were  sullenly  accord- 
ed a  lodging  for  the  night.  To  the  honour  of  the  Japanese 
government,  let  it  be  added  that  when  we  returned  to  Tokyo  and 
reported  the  affair,  the  village  authorities  were  at  once  deposed  and 
another  mayor  and  corporation  set  to  reign  in  their  stead.  Perhaps 
we  ought  to  apologise  for  thus  obtruding  our  own  personal 
adventures  on  the  reader.     We    have    only    hesitatingly  done  so, 


Divination.  121 

because  it  seems  to  us  that  the  exorcism  of  two  Englishmen  near 
the  end  of  the  nineteenth  century  is  a  little  incident  sufficiently 
strange  to  merit  being  put  on  record. 

As  for  badgers,  they  are  players  of  practical  jokes  rather  than 
seriously  wicked  deceivers.  One  of  their  pranks  is  to  assume  the 
shape  of  the  moon ;  but  this  they  can  only  do  when  the  real 
moon  is  also  in  the  sky.  Another  common  trick  of  theirs  is  to 
beat  the  tattoo  on  their  stomach  {ianuki no  hara-tsuzumi).  In  art 
they  are  generally  represented  thus  diverting  themselves,  with  an 
enormously  protuberant  abdomen  for  all  the  world  like  a  drum. 

Divination.  Astrology,  horoscopy,  palmistry,  physiognomy, 
foretelling  the  future  by  dreams, — all  these  forms  of  superstition  are 
current  in  Japan  ;  but  the  greatest  favourite  is  divination  by  means  of 
the  Eight  Diagrams  of  classical  China.  No  careful  observer  can 
walk  through  the  streets  of  any  large  city  without  noticing  here 
and  there  a  little  stall  where  a  fortune-teller  sits  with  his  divin- 
ing rods  in  front  of  him,  and  small  blocks  inscribed  with  sets  of 
horizontal  lines,  some  whole,  some  cut  in  two.  The  manipula- 
tion of  these  paraphernalia  embodies  a  highly  complicated  system 
of  divination  called  Eki,  literally  "  Changes,"  which  is  of 
immemorial  antiquity.  Confucius  himself  professed  his  inability 
to  understand  the  matter  thoroughly,  and  would  fain  have  had  fifty 
years  added  to  his  life  for  the  purpose  of  plunging  more  deeply 
into  its  mysteries.  The  common  fortune-tellers  of  to-day  have 
no  such  qualms.  Shuffling  the  divining  rods,  they  glibly  instruct 
their  clients  in  all  such  thorny  matters  as  the  finding  of  lost 
articles,  the  propriety  of  removing  to  another  quarter  of  the  town, 
the  advisability  of  adopting  a  child,  lucky  days  for  marriage  or  for 
undertaking  a  journey,  occasionally — if  those  in  power  be  not 
much  maligned — even  affairs  of  state.  Mr.  Takashima,  one  of  the 
leading  citizens  of  Yokohama,  traces  his  wealth  to  his  imprison- 
ment when  a  lad  ;  for  in  gaol  a  dog-eared  copy  of  Confucius' 
venerable  treatise  on  the  Diagrams  was  his  sole  companion. 
He     has     not     only    realised     a    fortune    by     obedience    to   its 


122  Dress. 

precepts,  but   has  published    a    voluminous    commentary    on    the 
subject. 

Few  resident  foreigners  have  any  notion  of  the  extent  to  which 
the  Japanese  with  whom  they  come  in  contact  are  still  under  the 
influence  of  this  order  of  ideas.  We  will  give  but  one  among 
several  instances  of  which  we  have  had  personal  cognizance.  A 
favourite  dog  of  the  present  writer's  was  lost  in  November,  1892, 
and  all  search,  advertisement,  and  application  to  the  police  proved 
unavailing.  Meanwhile,  the  servants  and  their  friends  privately 
had  recourse  to  no  less  than  three  diviners,  two  of  whom  were 
priests.  One  of  these  foretold  the  dog's  return  in  April,  and 
another  directed  that  an  ancient  ode  containing  the  words,  "  If 
I  hear  that  thou  awaitest  me,  I  will  forthwith  return,'"'  should  be 
written  on  slips  of  paper  and  pasted  upside  down  on  the  pillars 
of  the  house.  It  was  the  sight  of  these  slips  that  drew  our 
attention  to  the  matter.  The  best  of  it  is  that  the  dog  was 
found,  and  that,  too,  in  a  month  of  April,  namely,  April, 
1896,  after  having  been  missing  for  three  years  and  five  months. 
How  then  attempt,  with  any  good  grace,  to  discredit  the  fortune- 
teller in  the  eyes  of  these  simple  folk  ? 

Books  recommended.  The  Yi  King,  by  Rev.  Dr.  Legge,  published  as  Vol.  XVI. 
of  the  "Sacred  Eooks  of  the  East."— Sugiura's  translation  of  Takasbima's  book  entitled 
Eki-dan. 

Dress.  It  would  take  a  folio  volume  elaborately  illustrated 
to  do  justice  to  all  the  peculiarities  of  all  the  varieties  of  Japanese 
costume. 

Speaking  generally,  it  may  be  said  that  the  men  are  dressed 
as  follows.  First  comes  a  loin-cloth  (shita-obi)  of  bleached 
muslin.  Next  to  this  a  shirt  (juban)  of  silk  or  cotton,  to  which 
is  added  in  winter  an  under-jacket  (dogi)  of  like  material. 
Outside  comes  the  gown  {kimono),  or  in  winter  two  wadded 
gowns  {shiiagi  and  uwagi),  kept  in  place  by  a  narrow  sash  (obi). 
On  occasions  of  ceremony,  there  is  worn  furthermore  a  sort  of 
broad  pair  of  trousers,  or  perhaps  we  should  rather  say  a  divided 
skirt,  called  hakama,  and  a  stiff  coat  called  haori.      The   hakama 


Dress.  123 

and  haori  are  invariably  of  silk,  and  the  haori  is  adorned  with 
the  wearer's  crest  in  three  places,  sometimes  in  five.  The  head  is 
mostly  bare,  but  is  sometimes  covered  by  a  very  large  straw  hat, 
while  on  the  feet  is  a  kind  of  sock,  named  tabi,  reaching  only 
to  the  ankle,  and  having  a  separate  compartment  for  the  big  toe. 
Of  straw  sandals  there  are  two  kinds,  the  movable  son  used  for 
light  work,  and  the  ivaraji  which  are  bound  tightly  round  the 
feet  with  straw  string  and  used  for  hard  walking  only.  People 
of  means  wear  only  the  iabi  indoors,  and  a  pair  of  wooden  clogs, 
called  gela,  out-of-doors.  The  native  costume  of  a  Japanese 
gentleman  is  completed  by  a  fan,  a  parasol,  and  in  his  belt  a 
pipe  and  tobacco-pouch.  Merchants  also  wear  at  their  belt  what 
is  called  a  yaiale — a  kind  of  portable  ink-stand  with  a  pen 
inside.  A  cheap  variety  of  the  kimono,  or  gown,  is  the  yukata, 
— a  cotton  dressing-gown,  originally  meant  for  going  to  the 
bath  in,  but  now  often  worn  indoors  of  an  evening  as  a  sort 
of  deshabille. 

Take  it  altogether,  the  Japanese  gentleman's  attire,  and  that 
of  the  ladies  as  well,  is  a  highly  elegant  and  sanitary  one. 
The  only  disadvantage  is  that  the  flopping  of  the  kimono  hinders 
a  free  gait.  Formerly  the  Japanese  gentleman  wore  two  swords, 
and  his  back  hair  was  drawn  forward  in  a  queue  over  the  carefully 
shaven  middle  of  the  skull ;  but  both  these  fashions  are  obsolete. 
The  wearing  of  swords  in  public  was  interdicted  by  law  in  1876, 
and  the  whole  gentry  submitted  without  a  blow. 

Besides  the  loin-cloth,  which  is  universal,  the  men  of  the 
lower  classes,  such  as  coolies  and  navvies,  wear  a  sort  of  dark- 
coloured  pinafore  {hara-gake)  over  the  bust,  crossed  with  bands 
behind  the  back.  They  cover  their  legs  with  tight-fitting  drawers 
(rnomo-hiki)  and  a  sort  of  gaiters  (kyahan).  Their  coat,  called 
shirushi-banlen,  is  marked  on  the  back  with  a  Chinese  character 
or  other  sign  to  show  by  whom  they  are  employed.  But 
jinrikisha-men  wear  the  happi,  which  is  not  thus  marked, — that 
is,  when  they  wear  anything ;  for  in  the  country  districts  and 
in  the  hot  weather,   the  loin-cloth  is  often  the  sole  garment   of 


124  Dress. 

the  common  people,  while  the  children  disport  themselves  in  a 
state  of  nature.  It  is  not  unusual  to  see  a  kerchief  {hachi-maki) 
tied  over  the  brow,  to  prevent  the  perspiration  from  running 
into  the  eyes.  Travellers  of  the  middle  and  lower  classes  are 
often  to  be  distinguished  by  their  kimono  being  lifted  up  and 
shoved  into  the  sash  behind,  by  a  kind  of  silk  drawers  called 
patchi,  by  a  sort  of  mitten  or  hand-protector  called  tekkb,  and 
by  a  loose  overcoat  {kappa).  The  peasants  wear  a  straw  overcoat 
(mino)  in  rainy  or  snowy  weather. 

The  Japanese  costume  for  women  is  less  different  from  that 
of  the  men  than  is  the  case  with  us.  In  many  districts  the 
peasant  women  wear  trousers  and  rain-coats,  like  their  husbands. 
This,  coupled  with  the  absence  of  beard  in  the  men,  often 
makes  it  difficult  for  a  new-comer  to  distinguish  the  sexes.  In 
the  towns,  the  various  elements  of  female  dress  are  as  follows. 
Beneath  all,  come  two  little  aprons  round  the  loins  {koshi-maki 
and  suso-yoke),  then  the  shirt,  and  then  the  kimo?w  or  kimonos 
kept  in  place  by  a  thin  belt  {shita-jime).  Over  this  is  bound 
the  large  sash  {obi),  which  is  the  chief  article  of  feminine 
adornment.  In  order  to  hold  it  up,  a  sort  of  panier  or  "  improver  " 
{obi-age)  is  placed  underneath,  while  a  handsome  string  {obi-dome) 
keeps  it  in  position  above.  Japanese  women  bestow  lavish  care 
on  the  dressing  of  their  hair.  Their  combs  and  hair-pins  of 
tortoise-shell,  coral,  and  other  costly  materials  often  represent 
many  months  of  their  husbands'  salaries.  Fortunately  all  these 
things,  and  even  dresses  themselves,  can  be  handed  down  from 
mother  to  daughter,  as  jewels  and  lace  may  be  in  European 
lands,  Japanese  ladies'  fashions  not  changing  quickly. 

A  Japanese  lady's  dress  will  often  represent  a  value  of  200 
yen,  without  counting  the  ornaments  for  her  hair,  worth  perhaps 
as  much  again.  A  woman  of  the  smaller  shop-keeping  class 
may  have  on  her,  when  she  goes  out  holiday-making,  some  40 
or  50  yens  worth.  A  gentleman  will  rarely  spend  on  his 
clothes  as  much  as  he  lets  his  wife  spend  on  hers.  Perhaps  he 
may  not  have  on  more  than   60  yen's  worth.     Thence,  through 


Dress.  125 

a  gradual  decline  in  price,  we  come  to  the  coolie's  poor 
trappings,  which  may  represent  as  little  as  5  yen,  or  even  2  yen, 
as  he  stands. 

Children's  dress  is  more  or  less  a  repetition  in  miniature  of  that 
of  their  elders.  Long  swaddling-clothes  are  not  in  use.  Young 
children,  have,  however,  a  bib.  They  wear  a  little  cap  on  their 
heads,  and  at  their  side  hangs  a  charm-bag  (kinchaku),  made  out 
of  a  bit  of  some  bright-coloured  damask,  containing  a  charm 
{niamori-fudd)  which  is  supposed  to  protect  them  from  being  run 
over,  washed  away,  etc.  There  is  also  generally  fastened  some- 
where about  their  little  person  a  metal  ticket  {rnaigo-fiidd),  having 
on  one  side  a  picture  of  the  sign  of  the  zodiac  proper  to  the  year 
of  their  birth,  and  on  the  other  their  name  and  address,  as  a 
precaution  against  their  getting  lost.  Japanese  girls  do  not,  like 
ours,  remain  in  a  sort  of  chrysalis  state  till  seventeen  or  eighteen 
years  of  age,  and  then  "come  out"  in  gorgeous  attire.  The 
tiniest  tots  are  the  most  brilliantly  dressed.  Thenceforward  there 
is  a  gradual  decline  the  whole  way  clown  to  old  age,  which  final 
stage  is  marked  by  the  severest  simplicity.  Many  old  ladies  even 
cut  their  hair  short.  In  any  case,  they  never  exhibit  the  slightest 
coquetterie  de  vieillesse. 

Those  having  any  acquaintance  with  japan,  either  personal  or 
by  hearsay,  will  understand  that,  when,  we  say  that  the  Japanese 
wear  such  and  such  things  (in  the  present  tense),  we  speak  of 
the  native  costume,  which  is  still  in  fairly  common  use,  though 
unfortunately  no  longer  in  universal  use.  The  undignified  billy- 
cocks and  pantaloons  of  the  West  are  slowly  but  surely  supplanting 
the  picturesque,  aristocratic-looking  native  garb, — a  change  for 
which  the  Government  is  mainly  responsible,  as  it  obliges  almost 
all  officials  to  wear  European  dress  when  on  duty,  and  of  course 
the  inferior  classes  ape  their  betters.  Nor  have  the  women,  though 
naturally  more  conservative,  been  altogether  able  to  resist  the 
radicalism  of  their  time  and  country.  In  the  year  1886,  some 
evil  counsellor  induced  the  Court  to  order  gowns  from  Paris — we 
beg   pardon,   from   Berlin — likewise  corsets,   and   those   European 


1 2  6  Duck-hunting. 

shoes  in  which  a  Japanese  lady  finds  it  so  hard  to  walk  without 
looking  as  if  she  had  taken  just  a  little  drop  too  much.  Need  it 
be  said  that  the  Court  speedily  found  imitators  ?  Indeed,  as  a 
spur  to  the  recalcitrant,  a  sort  of  notification  was  issued,  "  recom- 
mending" the  adoption  of  European  costume  by  the  ladies  of 
Japan.  In  vain  the  local  European  press  cried  out  against  the 
barbarism,  in  vain  every  foreigner  of  taste  endeavoured  privately 
to  persuade  his  Japanese  friends  not  to  let  their  wives  make  guys 
of  themselves,  in  vain  Mrs.  Cleveland  and  the  ladies  of  America 
wrote  publicly  to  point  out  the  dangers  with  which  tight  lacing, 
and  European  fashions  generally,  threaten  the  health  of  those  who 
adopt  them.  The  die  was  cast  when,  on  the  ist  November,  1886, 
the  Empress  and  her  ladies  appeared  in  their  new  German  dresses 
at  a  public  entertainment.  The  Empress  herself  would  doubtless 
look  charming  in  any  garb.  Would  one  could  say  as  much  for 
all  those  with  her  and  for  those  that  followed  after  !  The  very 
highest  society  of  Tokyo  contained,  it  is  true,  from  the  begin- 
ning, a  few — a  very  few — women  of  whose  dress  Pierre  Loti 
could  say  without  flattery,  "  ioileiie  en  somme  qui  serait  de  mise  a 
Paris  et  qui  est  vraiment  bien  portee."  But  the  majority  !  No 
caricature  could  do  justice  to  the  bad  figures,  the  ill-fitting 
garments,  the  screeching  colours,  that  ran  riot  between  1886  and 
1889.  Since  then  there  has  been  a  wave  of  reaction,  in  conse- 
quence of  which  most  ladies  have  happily  returned  to  the  national 
costume.  How  charming  it  is  to  see  a  bevy  of  them  thus  dressed, 
— dressed,  mind  you,  not  merely  having  clothes  on, — such  a 
symphony  of  greys  and  browns  and  other  delicate  hues  of  silk 
and  brocade,  the  faultless  costume  being  matched  by  the  coy,  and 
at  the  same  time  perfectly  natural  and  simple,  manners  and  musical 
voices  of  the  wearers  ! 

Duek-hunting  with  the  help  of  decoys  and  a  sort  of  large 
hand-net,  in  grounds  laid  out  for  the  purpose  with  ponds  and 
canals  and  high  embankments  and  concealed  alleys,  is  a  sport 
which   was    invented    in   Tokyo   some   thirty   years   ago   for   the 


Earthquakes  and  Volcanoes.  127 

amusement  of  members  of  the  Imperial  Family.  Being  thus 
modern  in  origin,  and  requiring  an  extensive  park  with  large 
and  quiet  sheets  of  water  for  its  pursuit,  this  sport  has  scarcely 
been  taken  up  beyond  the  Imperial  circle,  except  by  one  or  two 
millionaire  families  who  occasionally  invite  their  friends  to  a 
battue.  Catching  ducks  as  one  would  catch  butterflies  must  be 
good  fun,  and  is  said  to  require  not  a  little  skill. 

Hawking,  which  was  a  favourite  pursuit  of  the  Japanese  nobility 
in  the  Middle  Ages,  is  still  sometimes  practised  on  the  same 
occasions.  In  fact,  the  new  sport  of  duck-hunting  would  seem 
to  have  developed  out  of  the  old  one  of  hawking,  while  it  was 
partly  suggested  by  the  fact  that  large  numbers  of  ducks  and 
other  migratory  water-fowl  habitually  come  down  from  the  north 
to  spend  the  winter  on  the  lagoons  around  Tokyo  and  in  the 
castle  moats. 

Earthquakes  and  Volcanoes.  "  Oh  !  how  I  wish  I  could 
feel  an  earthquake  !  "  is  generally  among  the  first  exclamations  of 
the  newly-landed  European.  "  What  a  paltry  sort  of  thing  it  is, 
considering  the  fuss  people  make  about  it !  "  is  generally  his 
remark  on  his  second  earthquake  (for  the  first  one  he  invariably 
sleeps  through).  But  after  the  fifth  or  sixth  he  never  wants  to  ex- 
perience another ;  and  his  terror  of  earthquakes  grows  with  length  of 
residence  in  an  earthquake-shaken  land,  such  as  Japan  has  been 
from  time  immemorial.  Indeed,  geologists  tell  us  that  much  of 
Japan  would  never  have  existed  but  for  the  seismic  and  volcanic 
agency  which  has  elevated  whole  districts  above  the  ocean  by 
means  of  repeated  eruptions. 

The  cause  of  earthquakes  remains  obscure.  The  learned  incline 
at  present  to  the  opinion  that  the  causes  may  be  many  and 
various ;  but  the  general  connection  between  earthquakes  and 
volcanoes  is  not  contested.  The  "faulting"  which  results  from 
elevations  and  depressions  of  the  earth's  crust,  the  infiltration 
of  water  to  great  depths  and  the  consequent  generation  of  steam, 
the  caving  in  of  subterranean  hollows — hollows  themselves   pro- 


128  Earthquakes  and  Volcanoes. 

duced  in  all  probability  by  chemical  degradation — these  and  other 
causes  have  been  appealed  to  as  the  most  probable.  One  highly 
remarkable  fact  is  that  volcanic  and  earthquake-shaken  regions 
are  almost  always  adjacent  to  areas  of  depression.  The  greatest 
area  of  depression  in  the  world  is  the  Pacific  basin ;  and  accord- 
ingly round  its  borders,  from  Kamchatka  through  the  Kuriles  to 
Japan,  thence  through  a  line  of  small  islands  to  the  Philippines 
and  to  Java,  then  eastward  to  New  Zealand,  and  right  up  the 
western  coast  of  South  America,  is  grouped  the  mightiest  array 
of  volcanoes  that  the  world  contains.  Another  fact  of  interest  is 
the  greater  occurrence  of  earthquakes  during  the  winter  months. 
This  has  been  explained  by  Dr.  Knott  as  the  result  of  "  the  annual 
periodicity  of  two  well-known  meteorological  phenomena — name- 
ly, snow  accumulations  over  continental  areas,  and  barometric 
gradients."* 

Japanese  history  is  a  concatenation  of  earthquake  disasters, 
exceeded  only  by  those  which  have  desolated  South  America. 
But  the  Japanese  people  had  perforce  submitted  to  these  ravages, 
without  attempting  to  investigate  the  causes  of  earthquakes 
scientifically.  All  they  had  done  was  to  record  anecdotes  and 
superstitions  connected  with  the  subject,  one  of  the  most  popular 
of  which  latter  (popular  indeed  in  many  parts  of  the  world  besides 
Japan)  is  that  earthquakes  are  due  to  a  large  subterranean  fish, 
which  wriggles  about  whenever  it  wakes  up.  Another  notion 
commonly  entertained,  and  embodied  in  the  following  doggerel 
verse,  is  that  certain  other  occurrences  can  be  foreknown  from  the 
hour  at  which  a  shock  takes  place  : — 

Ku  wa  yamai 

Go  shichi  ga  ame  ni 
Yotsu  hideri 

Mutsu  yaisu-doli  wa 
Kaze  to  shirn-beshi 


*  See  his  learned  papsr  on  the  subject  in  Vol.  IX.  Part  I.  cf  the  Transactions  of  the 
Seistnological  Society  rf  Japan. 


Earthquakes  and  Volcanoes.  129 

Which  may  be  Englished  as  Follows  : 

At  twelve  o'clock  it  means  disease, 

At  eight  or  four  'tis  rain, 
At  ten  'tis  drought,  while  six  and  two 
Of  wind  are  tokens  plain.* 

With  the  advent  of  the  theoretically  minded  European,  a  new 
era  was  inaugurated.  A  society  named  the  Seismological  Society 
of  Japan  was  started  in  the  spring  of  1880,  chiefly  through  the 
efforts  of  Professor  John  Milne,  F.R.S.,  who  has  ever  since  devoted 
all  his  energies  to  wrestling  with  the  problems  which  earthquakes, 
earth  oscillations,  earth  currents,  and  seismic  and  volcanic  phe- 
nomena generally,  supply  in  such  perplexing  quantity.  The 
Japanese  government,  too,  has  lent  a  helping  hand  by  the 
establishment  of  a  chair  of  seismology  in  the  Imperial  Universi- 
ty, and  of  several  hundreds  of  observing  stations  all  over  the 
empire, — an  empire,  remember,  dotted  with  no  less  than  fifty-one 
active  volcanoes,  and  experiencing  about  five  hundred  shocks 
yearly. 

Can  earthquakes  be  prevented  ?  If  they  cannot  be  prevented, 
can  they  at  least  be  foretold  ?  Both  these  questions  must  un- 
fortunately be  answered  in  the  negative.  Still,  certain  practical 
results  have  been  arrived  at  by  Mr.  Milne  and  his  fellow-workers, 
which  are  by  no  means  to  be  despised.  It  is  now  possible  to  make 
what  is  called  a  "seismic  survey  "  of  any  given  plot  of  ground,  and 
to  indicate  which  localities  will  be  least  liable  to  shocks.  It  has 
also  been  shown  that  the  complete  isolation  of  the  founda- 
tions of  a  building  from  the  surface  of  the  soil  obtains  for  the 
building  comparative  immunity  from  damage.  The  reason  is  that 
the  surface  shakes  more  than  the  adjacent  lower  layers  of  the  soil, 
just  as,  if  several  billiard-balls  be  placed  in  a  row,  an  impulse  given 
to  the  first  one  will  make  only  the  last  one  fly  off,  while  those 
in  the  middle  remain  nearly  motionless.     For  the  same  reason,  it 

*  Those  knowing  a  little  Japanese  will  be  puzzled  at  our  rendering  ku  (9)  by  "twelve 
o;clock,"  go  (5)  by  "eight,"  etc.  The  solution  of  the  mystery  will  be  found  below  In  the 
Article  entitled  Time. 


130  Earthquakes  and  Volcanoes. 

is  dangerous  to  build  near  the  edge  of  a  cliff.  To  architects, 
again,  various  hints  have  been  given,  both  from  experience 
accumulated  on  the  spot,  and  also  from  that  of  Manila  and  other 
earthquake-shaken  localities.  The  passage  from  natural  to  artificial 
vibrations  being  obvious,  Professor  Milne  has  been  led  on  to  the 
invention  of  a  machine  which  records,  after  the  manner  of  a 
seismograph,  the  vibrations  of  railway  trains.  This  machine 
keeps  an  automatic  record  of  all  the  motions  of  a  train,  and 
serves  to  detect  irregularities  occurring  at  crossings  and  points, 
as  also  those  due  to  want  of  ballast,  defects  in  bridges,  and 
so  on. 

Thus,  imperfect  as  it  still  is,  imperfect  as  the  nature  of  the  case 
ma}'  perhaps  condemn  it  always  to  remain,  the  science  of  seismo- 
logy has  already  borne  practical  fruit  in  effecting  a  saving  of 
tens  of  thousands  of  dollars.  To  those  who  are  interested  in 
seismometers  and  seismographs,  in  earthquake  maps  and  earth- 
quake catalogues,  in  seismic  surveys,  in  microseisms,  earth 
tremors,  earth  pulsations,  and  generally  in  earth  physics,  we 
recommend  a  perusal  of  the  Transactions  of  the  Seismological  Society 
of  Japan,  complete  in  sixteen  volumes,  of  its  continuation,  the 
Seismological  Journal  of  Japan,  and  of  the  volume  entitled  Earth- 
quakes, by  Professor  Milne  in  the  "  International  Scientific  Series." 
Volume  IX.  Part  II.  of  the  Seismological  Transactions  is  specially 
devoted  to  the  volcanoes  of  Japan,  and  contains  a  mass  of  statis- 
tics, anecdotes,  historical  details,  and  illustrations, — each  indivi- 
dual volcano,  from  the  northernmost  of  the  Kuriles  down  to 
Aso-san  in  Kyushu,  which  has  the  largest  crater  in  the  world, 
being  treated  of  in  detail.  The  Ansei  Kembnn  Rohi  and  the 
Ansei  Kembun  Shi  are  capitally  illustrated  Japanese  accounts  of  the 
great  earthquake  which  wrecked  Yedo  in  1855.  Lovers  of  the 
ghastly  will  search  long  before  they  find  anything  more  to  their 
taste  than  the  delineations  there  given  of  men  and  women 
precipitated  out  of  windows,  cut  in  two  by  falling  beams,  bruised, 
smashed,  imprisoned  in  cellars,  overtaken  by  tidal  waves,  or 
worse   still,   burnt  alive   in  one  of  the  great   fires   caused   by   the 


Education.  1 3 1 

sudden  overturning  of  thousands  of  candles  and  braziers  all  over 
the  city.     Truly  these  are  gruesome  books. 

Education.  During  the  Middle  Ages,  education  was  in  the 
hands  of  the  Buddhist  priesthood.  The  temples  were  the  schools, 
the  subject  most  insisted  on  was  the  Buddhist  sutras.  The 
accession  of  the  Tokugawa  dynasty  to  the  Shogunate  (A.D.  1603- 
1867)  brought  with  it  a  change.  The  educated  classes  turned 
Confucianist.  Accordingly  the  Confucian  Classics — the  Four 
Books  and  the  Five  Canons — were  installed  in  the  place  of 
honour,  learnt  by  heart,  expounded  as  carefully  as  in  China 
itself.  Besides  the  Chinese  Classics,  instruction  was  given  in  the 
native  history  and  literature.  Some  few  ardent  students  picked 
their  way  through  Dutch  books  that  had  been  begged,  borrowed, 
or  stolen  from  the  Hollanders  at  Nagasaki,  or  bought,  for  their 
weight  in  gold,  for  the  sake  of  the  priceless  treasures  of  medical 
and  other  scientific  knowledge  known  to  be  concealed  in  them. 
But  such  devotees  of  European  learning  were  forced  to  maintain 
the  greatest  secrecy,  and  were  hampered  by  almost  incredible 
difficulties  ;  for  the  government  of  the  day  frowned  on  all  things 
foreign,  and  more  than  one  zealous  student  expiated  by  his  death 
the  crime  of  striving  to  increase  knowledge. 

With  the  revolution  of  1868,  the  old  system  of  education 
crumbled  away.  Indeed,  even  before  1868  the  learning  of  foreign 
languages,  especially  English,  had  been  tacitly  connived  at.  A 
complete  reform  was  initiated — a  reform  on  Western  lines — and 
it  was  carried  out  at  first  chiefly  under  American  advice.  The 
present  Imperial  University  of  Tokyo  is  the  representative  and 
heir  of  several  colleges  established  some  thirty-five  years  ago, — a 
Language  College,  a  Medical  College,  a  College  of  Engineering. 
At  the  same  time,  primary  instruction  was  being  placed  on  a 
new  basis,  and  specially  promising  lads  were  sent  across  the  sea 
to  imbibe  Western  learning  at  its  source.  When  not  allowed  to 
go  abroad,  even  well-born  young  men  were  happy  to  black  the 
shoes  of  a  foreign  family,  in  the  hope  of  being  able  to  pick  up 


132  Education. 

foreign  languages  and  foreign  manners.  Some  of  the  more 
enterprising  took  French  leave,  and  smuggled  themselves  on 
board  homeward-bound  ships.  This  was  how — to  mention  but 
two  well-known  instances — the  adventurous  youths,  I  to  and 
Inoue,  entered  on  the  career  which  has  led  them  at  last  to 
preside  over  the  destinies  of  their  country. 

The  Tokyo  University  includes  six  faculties,  namely,  Law, 
Medicine,  Engineering,  Literature,  Science,  and  Agriculture. 
The  College  of  Medicine  was  till  recently  under  German  influence. 
The  other  colleges  have  had  and  still  have  professors  of  various 
nationalities,  chiefly  Japanese,  Anglo-Saxon,  and  German.  The 
students  number  3,400.  A  second  University  was  inaugurated  at 
Kyoto  in  1897,  with  the  three  faculties  of  Law,  Medicine,  and 
Science  (including  Engineering).  Its  courses  are  attended  by  over 
640  students.  Other  important  educational  establishments  started 
and  maintained  by  the  Government  are  two  Higher  Normal 
Schools  for  young  men  and  one  for  young  women,  fifty-seven 
other  Normal  Schools,  the  Lligher  Commercial  School,  the  Foreign 
Language  School,  the  Technical  School,  the  Nobles'  School,  the 
various  Naval  and  Military  Academies,  the  School  of  Navigation, 
the  Fine  Arts  School,  the  Tokyo  Musical  Academy,  the  Blind 
and  Dumb  School,  the  Agricultural  College  at  Sapporo,  and 
Six  Higher  Schools,  of  which  one  is  in  Tokyo  and  five  are 
in  the  provinces.  Two  other  Higher  Schools — one  in  Choshu 
and  one  in  Satsuma — derive  their  income  from  funds  granted 
by  the  ex-Daimyos  of  those  provinces.  To  enter  into  further 
details  would  be  beyond  our  scope.  Something  may  be 
gleaned  from  the  bare  statement  that  the  Japanese  Government 
supports  over  27,000  primary  schools,  which  have  a  staff  of 
109,118  teachers  and  are  attended  by  5,135,400  scholars ;  and  258 
middle  schools,  with  4681  teachers  and  nearly  95,000  scholars, 
besides  a  large  number  of  kindergartens.  There  are  also 
numerous  private  colleges,  great  and  small,  of  which  the  best- 
known  are  the  Keio  Gijuku  at  Tokyo,  founded  in  1868  by  the 
celebrated    free-thinker   and    writer    Fukuzawa,    and    the   Waseda 


Education.  133 

College,  also  at  Tokyo,  founded  and  still  maintained  by  Count 
Okuma,  an  eminent  politician,  leader  of  the  Progressist  party. 
The  scholastic  establishments  of  the  Protestant  missionaries  like- 
wise fill  a  considerable  place  in  public  esteem. 

Only  a  small  percentage  of  Japanese  students  board  at  their 
respective  schools.  In  Tokyo  alone  there  are  (May,  1904)  no 
less  than  1861  lodging-houses,  which  make  their  living  by  putting- 
students  up  and  feeding  them  cheaply.  The  system  is  not  without 
its  drawbacks,  especially  on  the  side  of  morals. 

Female  education  is  officially  provided  for  by  the  Higher 
Normal  School  for  Girls  already  referred  to,  by  seventy-nine 
High  Schools,  the  Peeresses'  School,  etc.,  etc.  Of  the  many 
private  institutions,  the  Industrial  School  for  Girls  is  the  largest. 
The  University  for  Women,  established  at  Tokyo  in  1901,  granted 
120  degrees  in  1904.  Nor,  in  even  so  slight  a  sketch  as  this,  is 
it  possible  to  omit  reference  to  the  numerous  educational  societies 
which,  for  a  series  of  years  past,  have  done  good  work  throughout 
the  country.  The  military  drill,  too,  which  figures  in  the 
curriculum  of  all  government  schools,  deserves  notice.  It  was 
made  obligatory  in  1886,  and  has  produced  excellent  results  both 
on  the  physique  and  the  spirit  of  the  scholars.  Various  European 
sports,  though  not  insisted  on,  are  encouraged.  Baseball  seems 
to  be  that  to  which  the  young  fellows  take  most  kindly. 
Even  the  girls  are  now  made  to  pass  through  a  course  of 
gymnastics. 

The  leading  idea  of  the  Japanese  Government,  in  all  its  educa- 
tional improvements,  is  the  desire  to  assimilate  the  national  ways  of 
thinking  to  those  of  European  countries.  How  great  a  measure  of 
success  has  already  been  attained,  can  be  best  gauged  by  comparing 
one  of  the  surviving  old-fashioned  literati  of  the  Tempo  period 
(A.D.  1830 — 1844)  with  an  intelligent  young  man  of  the  new 
school,  brought  up  at  the  Tokyo  University  or  at  Mr.  Fukuzawa's. 
The  two  seem  to  belong  to  different  worlds.  At  the  same  time  it  is 
clear  that  no  efforts,  however  arduous,  can  make  the  Europeanisation 
complete.     In  effect,  what  is  the  situation  ?     All  the  nations  of  the 


1 34  Education. 

West  have,  broadly  speaking,  a  common  past,  a  common  fund 
of  ideas,  from  which  everything  that  they  have  and  everything 
that  they  are  springs  naturally  as  part  of  a  correlated  whole, — one 
Roman  Empire  in  the  background,  one  Christian  religion  at  the 
centre,  one  gradual  emancipation,  first  from  feudalism  and  next 
from  absolutism,  worked  out  or  now  in  process  of  being  worked 
out  together,  one  art,  one  music,  one  kind  of  idiom,  even  though 
the  words  expressing  it  vary  from  land  to  land.  Japan  stands 
beyond  this  pale,  because  her  past  has  been  lived  through  under 
conditions  altogether  different.  China  is  her  Greece  and  Rome. 
Her  language  is  not  Aryan,  as  even  Russia's  is.  Allusions  familiar 
from  one  end  of  Christendom  to  the  other  require  a  whole  chapter 
of  commentary  to  make  them  at  all  intelligible  to  a  Japanese 
student,  who  often  has  not,  even  then,  any  words  corresponding  to 
those  which  it  is  sought  to  translate.  So  well  is  this  fact  under- 
stood by  Japanese  educators,  that  it  has  been  customary  for  many 
years  past  to  impart  most  of  the  higher  branches  of  knowledge 
through  the  medium  of  the  English  tongue.  This,  however,  is 
an  enormous  additional  weight  hung  round  the  student's  neck. 
For  a  Japanese  to  be  taught  through  the  medium  of  English,  is 
infinitely  harder  than  it  would  be  for  English  lads  to  be  taught 
through  the  medium  of  Latin,  as  Latin  does  not,  after  all,  differ 
very  widely  in  spirit  from  English.  It  is,  so  to  say,  English 
in  other  words.  But  between  English  and  Japanese  the  gulf  fixed 
is  so  wide  and  gaping  that  the  student's  mind  must  be  for  ever 
on  the  stretch.  The  simpler  and  more  idiomatic  the  English, 
the  more  does  it  tax  his  powers  of  comprehension.  It  is  difficult  to 
see  any  way  out  of  this  dilemma.  All  the  heartier,  therefore,  is 
the  praise  due  to  a  body  of  educators  who  fight  on  so  bravely, 
and  on  the  whole  so  successfully. 

As  for  the  typical  Japanese  student,  he  belongs  to  that  class 
of  youth  who  are  the  schoolmaster's  delight, — quiet,  intelligent, 
deferential,  studious  almost  to  excess.  His  only  marked  fault  is 
a  tendency  common  to  all  subordinates  in  Japan, — a  tendency  to 
wish  to  steer  the  ship  himself.     "  Please,  Sir,   we  don't  want  to 


Embroidery. 


5  b 


read  American  history  any  more.  We  want  to  read  how  balloons 
are  made."  Such  is  a  specimen  of  the  requests  which  every 
teacher  in  Japan  must  have  had  to  listen  to  over  and  over  again. 
Actual  insubordination— unknown  under  the  old  regime — became 
very  frequent,  during  the  closing  years  of  the  nineteenth  century, 
scarcely  a  trimester  passing  without  the  boys  of  some  important 
school  striking  work  on  the  plea  of  disapproval  of  their  teachers' 
methods  or  management.  Moreover,  there  sprang  up  a  class  of 
rowdy  youths,  called  sosht  in  Japanese, — juvenile  agitators  who, 
taking  all  politics  to  be  their  province,  used,  to  obtrude  their  views 
and  their  presence  on  ministers  of  state,  and  to  waylay — bludgeon 
and  knife  in  hand — those  whose  opinions  on  matters  of  public 
interest  happened  to  differ  from  their  own.  These  unhealthy 
symptoms,  like  others  incidental  to  the  childhood  of  the  New 
Japan,  seem  now  to  have  passed  away  without  leaving  any  perma- 
nent ill  effects. 

BoolES  recommended.  The  annual  Report  of  the  Minister  of  State  for  Education, 
and  the  Calendars  of  the  Universities  and  of  the  various  ether  educational  institutions. 
— See  also  Miss  Bacon's  Japanese  Girls  and  Women. 

EE — EE.  These  letters  which,  to  the  perplexity  of  European 
travellers,  adorn  the  signboards  of  many  forwarding  agencies  in 
modern  Japan,  stand  for  the  English  word  "express." 

Embroidery.  The  reader  may  tire  of  being  told  of  each  art 
in  succession  that  it  was  imported  into  Japan  from  China  via 
Korea  by  Buddhist  missionaries.  But  when  such  is  the  fact,  what 
can  be  done  but  state  it?  The  greatest  early  Japanese  artist  in 
embroidery  of  whom  memory  has  been  preserved  was  Chujo 
Hime,  a  Buddhist  nun  of  noble  birth,  who,  according  to  the 
legend,  was  an  incarnation  of  Kwannon,  the  Goddess  of  Mercy. 
After  enduring  relentless  persecution  at  the  hands  of  a  cruel 
stepmother,  she  retired  to  the  temple  of  Taema-dera  in  Yamato, 
where  her  grand  embroidered  picture,  or  mandara  as  it  is  called, 
of  the  Buddhist  heaven  with  its  many  mansions,  is  still  shown. 
The  gods  themselves  are  said  to  have  aided  her  in  this  work. 


136  Empress. 

The  embroider}"  and  brocade  and  painted  silks  of  more  modern 
days  possess  exquisite  beauty.  A  comparatively  recent  invention  is 
the  birodo-yiizen,  in  which  ribbed  velvet  is  used  as  the  ground  for  pic- 
tures which  are  real  works  of  art,  the  velvet  being  partly  cut,  partly 
dyed,  partly  painted.  Pity  only,  as  we  could  not  help  noticing  on 
a  recent  visit  to  Kyoto,  that  the  embroiderers  tend  more  and  more 
to  drop  the  patterns  of  dragons  and  phenixes  and  flower-cars,  etc., 
etc.,  which  made  their  fame,  and  actually  elect  to  work  from 
photographs  instead,  thus  degrading  free  art  to  the  level  of  slavish 
imitation.  They  informed  us  that  the  globe-trotters  prefer  these 
less  esthetic  pieces  with  a  real  jinrikisha  or  a  real  street  lamp- post 
to  the  formal,  but  oh  !  how  beautiful,  fancies  of  an  earlier  date. 
Doubtless  new-comers  have  to  be  educated  up  to  these  things. 
However,  being  but  a  man,  while  some  of  our  readers  are  sure  to 
be  ladies  whose  sharp  eyes  would  soon  detect  mistakes,  we  must 
abstain  from  entering  into  any  further  details  or  disquisitions. 
We  Mould  only  recommend  all  who  can  to  visit  the  Kyoto 
embroidery  and  velvet-shops,  and  to  take  plenty  of  money  in 
their  purse.  There  may  be  two  opinions  about  Japanese  painting  ; 
there  can  be  only  one  about  Japanese  embroidery. 

Note  in  passing,  as  an  instance  of  topsy-turvydom,  that  com- 
paratively few  Japanese  embroiderers  are  women.  All  the  best 
pieces  are  the  work  of  men  and  boys. 

Empress.  The  Salic  law  was  only  introduced  into  Japan  with 
the  brand-new  Constitution  of  1889.  Before  then,  several  empresses 
had  sat  on  the  throne,  and  one  of  them,  the  Empress  Jingo — ex- 
cuse the  name,  O  English  reader  !  it  signifies  "  divine  prowess  " 
— ranks  among  the  greatest  heroic  figures  of  early  Japanese  legend 
(see  Article  on  History  and  Mythology).  All  Japanese  em- 
presses have  been  native-born.  Doubtless  the  remoteness  of  Japan 
from  other  lands  precluded  the  idea  of  foreign  matrimonial 
alliances.  The  monarch's  life-partner  was  habitually  sought  in  the 
families  of  the  native  aristocracy,  one  consequence  of  which  is  that 
the  Japanese  Imperial  Family  is  absolutely  native  and  national,  not 


English  as  she  is  Japped.  137 

alien   in   blood,  like   the   reigning  houses  of  England,  Russia,  and 
many  other  European  states. 

The  present  Empress  is  of  course  Empress  Consort.  Her  name 
is  Haru-ko,  correctly  translated  by  Pierre  Loti,  in  his  Japoneries 
d'Automne,  as  "  lTmperatrice  Printemps."  Wisely  abstaining  from 
even  the  shadow  of  interference  in  politics,  this  illustrious  lady, 
daughter  of  a  high  noble  of  the  Court  of  Kvoto,  devotes  her  life 
to  learning  and  to  good  works,  hospitals  in  particular  engrossing 
her  attention.  The  Red  Cross  Hospital  at  Shibuya  in  Tokyo, 
one  of  the  most  spacious — one  might  well  say  luxurious — hospitals 
in  the  East,  was  her  creation,  and  the  Charity  Hospital  at  Shiba 
in  Tokyo  also  enjoys  her  munificent  patronage. 

English  as  she  is  Japped.  English  "  as  she  is  spoke  and 
wrote  "  in  Japan  forms  quite  an  enticing  study.  It  meets  one  on 
landing,  in  such  signboard  inscriptions  as 

TAILOR  NATIVE  COUNTRY. 

DRAPER,  MILLINER  AND  LADIES  OUTFATTER. 

The  Ribbons,  the  laces,  the  veils,  the  feelings* 

HAND  PANTING  POST  CARDS 

MANUFACTURED.     BY  CAKE  &  A.  PIECE.  OF.  BREAD.f 

EXTRACT  OF  FOWL  (over  an  egg-shop.) 

PEST  MILK. 

Photographer  Executed. 

HEAD  CUTTER,   {over  a  barber  s  shop.) 

J 'he  European  monkey  jacket  make  for  the  Japanese.  • 

WRITING  FOR  ANOTHER. J 

Specialist  for  the  Decease  of  Children. 

BEST  PERFUMING  WATER  ANTI-FLEA. 

DEALER    0F.§ 

*  Can  the  shopkeeper  mean  "  frill  in  gs  ?  " 

t  On  a  baker's  cart. 

+  Over  a  public  letter-writer's.  Owing  to  the  difficulties  of  ideographic  writing  and  a 
highly  peculiar  epistolary  style,  the  public  letter-writer  continues  to  drive  a  brisk  trade 
even  among  a  population  fairly  well-educated. 

§  Of  what,  docs  not  appear. 


'38 


English  as  she  is  Japped. 


and  a  hundred  more.  The  thirsty  soul,  in  particular,  can  make 
himself  merry,  while  he  drinks,  with  such  droll  legends  on 
bottles  as 

FOGREN  COUNTY  WINES  LITTLE  SEAL. 
St.  JUILEN  Bottled  by  BORDEAUX. 
Good    wine,    they    say,    needs    no    bush.       Apparently,    it    is 
equally  independent  of  such  aid  as  orthography  can  lend. 


Many  strange  notices  are  stuck  up,  and  advertisements  circu- 
lated. The  following  is  the  manner  in  which  "  Fragrant  Kozan 
Wine  "  is  recommended  to  public  attention  : — 

If  health  be  not  steady,  heart  is  not  active.  Were  heart  active,  the  deeds 
may  be  done.  Among  the  means  to  preserve  health,  the  best  way  is  to 
take  in  Kozan  wine  which  is  sold  by  us,  because  it  is  to  assist  digestion 
and  increase  blood.  Those  who  want  the  steady  health  should  drink  Kozan 
wine.  This  wine  is  agreeable  even  to  the  females  and  children  who  can 
not  drink  any  spirit  because  it  is  sweet.  On  other  words,  this  pleases  mouth 
and  therefore,  it  is  very  convenient  medicine  for  nourishing. 


English  as  she  is  Japped.  139 

Japan  insted  of  Coffee.* 

Mure   men   is   not   got   dropsg   of  the   legs    who  us   this   coffee,  which  is 
contain  nourish. 

The  following  is  the  label   usually  to  be   found  pasted  on  the 
handles  of  cheap  Japanese  fire-shovels  : — 


TRADE  (E)  MARK 

1 

! 

Showvels    Scoops   and  Spades 

whi- 

ch 

are     exhibited    of     the     above 

lr- 

ade 

mark    is    very     cheap    in    the 

pi- 

ce 

and     it     is     bonueniemt     bor 

Use. 

There    is    no    neceily    exklain    ally 

aek- 

norulebqe  by  ihebll  customers. 

The  following  notice  Mas  stuck  up  a , few  years  ago  in  one  of 
the  hotels  at  Kyoto  : 

Notice  to  the  Dealers. 

On  the  dinning-time  nobody  shall  be  enter  to  the  clinning-rooin,  and 
drowing-room  without  the  guests'  allow.  Any  dealer  shall  be  honestly  his 
trade,  of  course  the  sold  one  shall  be  prepare  to  make  up  the  safe  package. 

The  reader  may  be  curious  to  know  who  "  the  sold  one  "  here 
referred  to  is.  Might  it  not  perhaps  be  the  purchaser?  No;  at 
least  that  is  not  what  the  hotel-keeper  wished  to  suggest.  By 
translating  back  literally  into  Japanese  idiom,  we  reach  his 
meaning,  which  is  that  the  merchant  who  sells  the  things  must 
undertake  furthermore  to  pack  them  securely. 

NOTIES. 

Our  tooth  is  a  very  important  organ  for  human  life  and  conntenance  as 
you  know ;  therefore  when   it  is  attack  by  disease  or  injury,  artificial  tooth 
is  also  very  useful. 
I  am  engage  to  the  Dentistry  and  I  will  make  for  your  purpose. 

*  I.e.,  "  a  Japanese  substitute  for  coffee,  " 


140  English  as  she  is  Japped. 

A  lawyer  desirous  of  attracting  foreign  clients  ends  up  his  busi- 
ness card  by  the  cryptic  announcement  :  "  I  can  manage  the  affairs 
without  any  affliction  of  an  English." 

A  "  Guide  for  Visitors  to  Atami"  informs  us  that  the  geyser 
there  was  discovered  by  a  priest  named  Man-gwan  who  made 
many  improvements  on  the  springs.  Before  that  day,  the  springs 
doited  out  in  the  sea,  and  was  a  suffering  to  aquatic  families .... 
If  a  people  can  not  come  to  Atami  is  belter  to  bathe  in  that  water 
once  or  twice  a  day,  and  take  good  exercise  in  clean  airs.  By 
"  aquatic  families,"  let  it  be  noted,  the  writer  means,  not — as 
might  perhaps  be  supposed— the  fishermen,  but  the  fishes. 
This  Atami  Guide-book  is,  however,  quite  eclipsed  by  "  A 
Guide  on  Hakone," — a  perfect  jewel,  which  sells  on  the  spot 
for  "  30  zonls."  Here  is  part  of  its  description  of  the  locality  in 
question  : —  Whenever  we  visit  the  place,  the  first  pleasure  to  be 
longed,  is  the  viciv  of  Fuji  Mountain  and  its  summit  is  covered  with 
permanent  undissolving  snow,  and  its  regular  configuration  hanging 
dozen  the  sky  like  an  opened  white  fan,  may  be  looked  long  at  equal 
shape  from  several  regions  surrounding  it.  Every  one  who  saw  it 
ever  has  nothing  but  applause.  It  casts  the  shadow  in  a  contrary 
direction  on  still  glassy  face  of  lake  as  I  have  just  described.  Build- 
ings of  Imperial  Solitary  Palace,  scenery  ofGongcn,  all  are  spontaneous 
pictures.  Wind  proper  in  quantity,  suits  to  our  boat  to  slip  by  sail, 
and  moon-light  shining  on  the  sky  shivers  qua/icy  lustre  over  ripples 
of  the  lake.  The  cuckoo  singing  near  by  our  hotel,  plays  on  a  harp, 
and  the  gulls  flying  about  to  and  fro  seek  their  food  in  the  waves. 
All  these  panorama  may  be  gathered  only  in  this  place. — Nor  are 
mere  creature  comforts  less  well-provided  for  in  this  paradise  than 
esthetic  pleasures.  Forty-five  houses,  we  read,  among  whole  machi 
are  the  hotels  for  cessation  of  travellers.  Each  of  them  has  an 
untiring  view  of  garden  and  an  elegant  prospect  of  landscape  ;  hence 
many  visitors  are  assembled  at  the  summer  days  to  attend  their  own 
health.  Breads,  fleshes  of  fowls  and  animals,  and  fresh  fishes  trans- 
porting 011  from  Yoshihama  and  Fukuura  satisfy  the  relish  of  people. 
The  milk  is  distributed  to  the  hopers  by  the  branch  store  in  Hakone  of 


English  as  she  is  Japped.  141 

Kobokusha,  the  pasturage  at  Sengoku-kara,  Streams  of  water  issuing 
forth  in  the  south-eastern  valley  of  Hakone-machi,  are  used  by  whole 
inhabitants.  Transparent  and  delicate  liquid  is  constantly  overflowing 
from  the  vat  and  its  purity  free  from  deflement  so  fully  values  on  the 
applause  of  visitors  as  it  is  with  the  air. — -This  little  work  of  thirty- 
three  tiny  pages  has  an  "  Analysis  "  in  four  Parts  and  thirty-two 
Sections,  and  the  first  edition  had  the  Preface  at  the  end. 

English  as  she  is  Japped  has  even  crossed  the  seas.  The 
following  notice  adorns  a  laundry  in  Thursday  Island  : 

We  most  cleanly  and  carefully  wash  our  customers  with  cheap  prices  as 
under  ;  Ladies — eight  shillings  per  hundred  ;  gentlemen  seven  shillings  per 
hundred. 

Letters  ofYer  some  choice  specimens.  We  select  two  epistolary 
gems,  only  changing  the  proper  names.  The  first  is  from  a  young- 
man,  who  entered  into  friendly  relations  with  the  family  of  a 
certain  consul,  in  order  to  perfect  his  English. 

Saga,  August  iSth. 
Robert  Fans  haw  Esq. 

G.  B.  Consul. 

Dear  Sir, 

»I  am  very  glad  to  hear  that  you  and  your  f amity  are  very  zvell  and 
J  am  also  quite  well  as  usual,  but  my  grandfather 's  disease  is  very  severe 
without  changitig  as  customary.  I  fear  t/iat  it  is  a  long  time  since  1  have 
pay  a  visit  to  you.  I  wish  your  pardon  to  get  azvay  my  remote  crime. 
We  have  only  a  few  hot  in  Saga  as  well  as  summer  is  over,  and  we  feel 
to  be  very  cool  in  morning  and  evening.  Sometimes  we  have  an  earthquake 
here  at  now,  but  the  mens  was  of  right  no  more, 

I  grieves  tliat  a  terrible  accident  took  place  in  the  school  of  military 
Saga.  The  story  of  it,  a  scholar  had  put  to  death  some  colleague  with  a 
greate  stick  on  the  floor  and  a  doctor  of  anatomy  dissected  immediately 
with  dead  disciple,  then  all  pupils  of  school  %vcre  now  to  qtiestion  its  matter 
in  the  judgement  seat  •  but  do  not  it  decide  yet. 

I  Unequivocal  matter  wotild  speak  you  of  kind  letter. 

1  am,  &°c., 


142  English  as  she  is  Japped. 

The  following  is  a  letter  sent  in  reply  to  one  addressed  by  a 

foreign  resident  to  the  district  office  in  Tokyo,   notifying  the  birth 

of  a  daughter  : — 

Mr.  R.   H.  Saunders. 

Dear  Sir, 

I  am  reicevcd  your  letter  of  your  beautiful  baby  birth, 

well ;    I  understand  the   letter  fact,   but  you   must  write   with 

Japanese  words,  by  Law  calls.      therefore  I  have  translated 

Japanese  for  you.      I  hope  you   will  write  your  name,  age, 

yourself,   with   native   words.      the   mark    (  ) 

it  s  able  to  write. 

Truly  yours 

M.    Suzuki. 

"  China  "  having  been  set  as  a  theme  in  a  Tokyo  school,  one 
student  disposed  summarily  of  the  hereditary  rivals  of  his  race 
by  remarking  that 

Chinese  gentlemen  adjourn  their  tales  and  clutches  so  long  as  they  are 
able.     The  people  are  all  liars. 

Another  young  essayist  was  more  diffuse,  and  let  us  hope  got 
better  marks  : — 

CHINA. 

Here  is  an  old  man  whose  body  is  very  large  ;  he  is  about  four  thousand 
years  of  age  and  China  is  his  name.  His  autobiography  tells  me  that  he 
was  born  in  early  times  in  Eastern  Asia.  He  was  a  simple  baby  smiling 
with  amiable  face  in  the  primitive  cradle  ;  and  as  a  young  man,  he  progressed 
hopefully.  When  he  was  full  grown  he  accomplished  many  bright  acts  ;  he 
married  a  sweet  lady  who  conceived  the  beautiful  children  of  the  arts  and 
sciences.     But  by  and  bye  he  became  old,  lame,  blind  and  decrepit. 

I  must  feel  sorry  for  the  sad  fate  of  an  old  teacher  or  neighbour  of  mine. 
Why  his  gleamy  grew  gloomy  ?     W?hat  compassion  I  feel  for  him  ! 

There  are  many  smokes  of  the  opium  but  not  holy  blood  of  the  cross. 

THE  CHARACTER  OF  THE  ENGLISHMAN. 

The  England  which  occupied  of  the  largest  and  greatest  dominion  which 
rarely  can  be.  The  Englishman  works  with  a  very  powerful  hands  and  the 
long  legs  and  even  the  eminenced  mind,  his  chin  is  so  strong  as  decerved 
iron.  He  are  not  allowed  it  to  escape  if  he  did  siezed  something.  Being 
spread  his  dominion  is  dreadfully  extensive  so  that  his  countryman  boastally 


English  as  she  is  Japped.  143 

say  "  the  sun  are  never  sets  on  our  dominions."  The  Testamony  of  English 
said  that  he  that  lost  the  common  sense,  he  never  any  benefit  though  he 
had  gained  the  complete  world.  The  English  are  cunning  institutioned  to 
establish  a  great  empire  of  the  Paradise.  The  Englishman  always  said  to 
the  another  nation  "  give  me  your  land  and  I  will  give  you  my  Testimony." 
So  it  is  not  a  robbed  but  exchanged  as  the  Englishman  always  confide  the 
object  to  be  pure  and  the  order  to  be  holy  and  they  reproach  him  if  any 
them  are  killed  to  death  with  the  contention  of  other  man.  (I  shall  continue 
the  other  time.) 

The  young  essayist  hits  us  rather  hard — doesn't  he  ? — when  he 
drags  into  the  garish  light  of  day  our  little  foible  for  giving  a 
"  Testimony  "  in  exchange  for  "  the  another  nation's  land." 

A  writer,  who  prefixes  an  English  preface  to  an  interesting 
"Collection  of  Registered  Trade  Marks,"  observes  that  The  society 
in  niuteenth  century  is  always  going  to  be  civiliged,  and  so  all  things 
arc  also  improved.  The  muse  of  course  ranking  among  "  civilig- 
ing "  influences,  a  little  volume  has  been  published  at  Tokyo 
with  the  object  of  inducting  the  Far-Eastern  mind  into  the 
mysteries  of  English  verse.  It  is  entitled  New  of  Pom  and  Song 
the  English  and  Japanese.  Occasionally  Japanese  youths  them- 
selves, like  Silas  Wegg,  "  drop  into  poetry." 
The  Midnight  Winds. 

At  the  midnight — my  own  darkness  alone  ;  none  but  God  and  myself ! 

A  conscious  slumber  muffled  the  universe, 

Palpitating  on  the  lonely  bed  like  a  chilly  sea  in  the  misty  dawn. 

Be  hunting  (Oh)  by  the  black  boneless  winds. 

With  the  sewed  eyes  and  the  wild,  weird,  full-opened  soul, 

I'm  reviewing  the  sheeted  memories  of  past  under  an  inky  light ; 

Until — alas,   the   strange   giant   of  winds   inclosed    about    my    breathless 
cabin  : — 

God  made  a  night,  a  midnight  for  me  alone  ! 

Oh,  our  matchless  God  !     If  the  wizard  rout 

Flit  in  through  the  broken  window  for  a  lady-moon  welcomed  ! 

Ever  a  gentle  violet  upturns  her  eye  : 

Ever  a  radiant  rose  polish  her  thorns  against. 

I  have  such  of  none,  but  a  withered,  colorless  soul ! 

The  latter  part  of  this  poem  is  somewhat  discursive  ;  but  the 
radiant  rose  polishing  her  thorns  against  a  full  stop  is  a  genuine 


144  English  as  she  is  Japped. 

touch  of  genius.  The  following — so  far  as  we  apprehend  its  obscu- 
rities through  the  mist  of  poetic  license — would  appear  to  be  a 
dithyramb  in  praise  of  woman,  who  is  apostrophised  as  the  cement 
of  society,  or,  to  use  the  youthful  bard's  own  realistic  expression, 
"  social  glue." 

Her  Glee. 

The  purest  flame,  the  hottest  heat 

Is  Woman's  Power  ever  earth  ; 
Which  mighty  black  and  pale  down  beat, 

And  made  the  Eden,  place  of  birth. 

Of  what  ?  of  what  ?  can  thou  tell  me  ? 

A  birth  of  Noble,  High,  value — ■ 
The  station  He  destined  for  thee  — 

Of  woman,  Mother,  Social  Glue. 

Let  her  be  moved  from  earth,  to  try, 

What  dark  mist  overhelms  human  Race  ! 

Let  Lady  claim  with  all  the  cry  : — 

"  Can  you  still  hold  and  hold  your  pe'ace  ?" 

How  sweet,  how  mirthful,  gay  is  Name  ! 

What  boon,  thing,  may  exceed  in  kind  ? 
Would  She  be  praised,  entolled — not  Shame  : 

Tie  Pale,  of  Both,  to  bound,  to  bind. 

And  now,  Japanese  readers,  if  haply  any  such  favour  this  little  book 
with  their  perusal,  rise  not  in  your  wrath  to  indict  us  of  treachery 
and  unkindness.  We  mean  nothing  against  the  honour  of  Japan. 
But  finding  Tokyo  life  dull  on  the  whole,  we  solace  ourselves 
by  a  little  innocent  laughter  at  an  innocent  foible  whenever  we 
can  find  one  to  laugh  at.  You  yourselves  could  doubtless  make 
up,  on  the  subject  of  Japanese  as  she  is  Englished,  an  article 
which  should  be  no  less  comical, — an  article  which  should 
transcribe  the  first  lispings  in  "  globe-trotterese,"  and  the  perhaps 
still  funnier,  because  more  pretentions,  efforts  of  those  of  us  who 
think  themselves  rather  adepts  in  Japanese  as  spoken  in  the  upper 
circles.  For  our  own  part,  we  can  feel  our  heavy  British  accent 
dragging  down  to  earth    every   light-winged   syllable  of  Japanese 


English  as  she  is  Japped.  145 

as  we  pronounce  it.  We  laugh  at  ourselves  for  this.  Why 
should  we  not  laugh  at  you,  when  occasion  offers  ?  There  are 
only  two  styles  of  "  English  as  she  is  Japped  "  which  call,  not  for 
laughter,  but  for  the  severest  blame.  One  of  these  occurs  in  books 
which  are  published  under  Japanese  names  as  original  matter,  but 
are  really  made  up  of  a  cento  of  passages  stolen  from  European 
writers.  The  alteration  of  a  word  here  and  there  is  naively 
supposed  to  effect  concealment ;  but  being  almost  always  unskilful- 
ly done,  it  serves  only  to  make  the  fraud  more  glaring.  We 
ourselves  have  repeatedly  been  the  corpus  vile  of  such  experi- 
ments. A  second  Japano-English  style  is  exemplified  in  so-called 
educational  works,  such  as  Conversations  in  English  and  Japanese 
for  Merchant  who  the  English  Language, — English  Letter  Writer, 
for  the  Gentlemen  ivho  regard  on  the  Commercial  and  an  Official, — 
Englishand.  fapanies.  Names  on  Lelteps,  and  other  productions 
whereby  shameless  scribblers  make  money  out  of  unsophisticated 
students.  And  yet  these  curiosities  of  literature  are  too  grotesque 
for  at  least  the  European  reader  to  be  long  angry  with  them.  One 
of  the  funniest  is  entitled  The  Practical  use  of  Conversation  for 
Police  Authorities.  After  giving  "Cordinal  number,"  "Official 
Tittle,"  "  Parts  of  the  Body  "  such  as  "  a  gung,*"  "  a  jow,"  "  the 
mustacheo,"  diseases  such  as  "a  caucer,"  "blind,"  "a  ginddness," 
"the  megrim,"  "a  throat  wen,"  and  other  words  useful  to  police- 
men, the  compiler  arrives  at  "  Misseranious  subjects,"  which  take 
the  form  of  conversations,  some  of  them  real  masterpieces.  Here 
is  one  between  a  representative  of  "  the  force "  and  an  English 
blue-jacket  : — 

What  countryman  are  you  ? 

I  am  a  sailor  belonged  to  the  Golden-Eagle,  the  English  man-of-war. 

Why  do  you  strike  this  Jinrikisha-man  ? 

I  Ic  told  me  impolitely. 

What  does  he  told  you  impolitely  ? 

He  insulted  me  saing  loudly  "the  Sailor  the  Sailor"  when  I  am  passing 
here. 

*  The  Japanese  translation  shows  that  "gum  "  is  ihe  word  intended. 


146  Esoterieism. 

Do  you  striking  this  man  for  that? 

Yes. 

But  do  not  strike  him  for  it  is  forbid ed. 

I  strike  him  no  more. 


The  author  teaches  his  policemen,  not  only  to  converse,  but 
to  moralise.     Thus  : 

Japanese  Police  Force  consists  of  nice  young  men. 

But  I  regret  that  their  attires  are  not  perfectly  neat. 

When  a  constable  come  in  conduct  with  a  people  he  shall  be  polite  and 
tender  in  his  manner  of  speaking  and  movement. 

If  he  will  terrify  or  scold  the  people  with  enormous  voice,  he  will  become 
himself  an  object  of  fear  for  the  people. 

Civilized  people  is  meek,  but  barbarous  peoples  is  vain  and  haugty. 

A  cloud-like  writing  of  Chinese  character,  and  performance  of  the  Chinese 
poem,  or  cross  hung  on  the  breast,  would  no  more  worthy,  to  pretend  others 
to  avail  himself  to  be  a  great  man. 

Those  Japanese  who  aquired  a  little  of  foreign  language,  think  that  they 
have  the  knowledge  of  foreign  countries,  as  Chinese,  English  or  French, 
there  is  nothing  hard  to  success  what  they  attempt. 

They  would  imitate  themselves  to  Caesar,  the  ablest  hero  of  Rome,  who 
has  been  raised  the  army  against  his  own  country,  crossing  the  river 
Rabicon. 

A  gleam  of  diffidence  seems  to  cross  the  police  mind  when  one 
policeman  says  to  the  other  "You  speak  the  English  very  well," 
and  the  other  replies  "You  jest." 

Book  recommended.  Miss  Duncan's  delightful  bock,  A  Social  Departure,  Chap. 
VII.  gives  a  side-splitting  specimen  of  the  dialect  under  consideration,  in  the  shape  of 
an  interview  conducted  in  English  by  a  young  Japanese  journalist. 

Esoterieism.  When  an  Englishman  hears  the  word  "eso- 
teric," the  first  thing,  probably,  that  comes  into  his  head  is 
Buddhism,  the  second  the  name  of  Mr.  Sinnett  or  Mrs.  Annie 
Besant.  Matters  stand  somewhat  differently  in  Japan.  Not 
religion  only,  but  every  art,  every  pastime,  here  is  or  has  been 
esoteric, — poetry,  music,  porcelain-making,  fencing,  football,  even 
bone-setting,  and  cookery  itself.  Esoterieism  is  not  a  unique 
mystery    shrouding  a  special   class  of  subjects.      It  is   a  general 


Esoterieism.  147 

attitude  of  the  mind  at  a  certain  stage,  and  a  very  natural  attitude 
too,  if  one  takes  the  trouble  to  look  into  it.  Sensible  men  do 
not  wear  their  hearts  on  their  sleeves  for  daws  to  peck  at.  Why 
should  an  artist  do  so  with  his  art?  Why  should  he  desecrate 
his  art  by  initiating  unworthy  persons  into  its  principles  ?  Nor  is 
it  merely  a  question  of  advisability,  or  of  delicacy  and  good  taste. 
It  is  a  question  of  possibility  and  impossibility.  Only  sympathetic 
pupils  are  fitted  by  nature  to  understand  certain  things ;  and 
certain  things  can  only  be  taught  by  word  of  mouth,  and  when 
the  spirit  moves  one.  Moreover,  there  comes  in  the  question  of 
money.  Esoteric  teaching  of  the  lower  arts  may  be  said  to  have  per- 
formed, in  old  days,  the  function  of  our  modern  system  of  patents. 
The  institution  of  guilds  belonged  to  the  same  order  of  ideas. 

Such  are,  it  would  seem,  the  chief  headings  of  the  subject, 
considered  in  the  abstract.  Fill  them  out,  if  you  please,  by  further 
reflection  and  further  research ;  and  if  you  wish  to  talk  to  your 
Japanese  friends  about  esoterieism,  remember  the  fascinating  words 
hiden,  "  secret  tradition  ;  "  hijutsu,  "  secret  art ;  "  and  okugi,  "  inner 
mysteries,''  which  play  a  notable  part  in  Japanese  history  and 
literature. 

Many  are  the  stories  told  of  the  faithful  constancy  with  which 
initiation  into  hidden  mysteries  has  been  sought.  Early  in  the 
tenth  century  there  lived  a  great  musician,  a  nobleman  named 
Hakuga-no-Sammi.  But  one  Semi-Maru  was  a  greater  musician 
still.  He  dwelt  in  retirement,  with  no  other  companion  but  his 
lute,  and  there  was  a  melody  of  which  he  alone  had  the  secret. 
Hakuga — as  he  may  be  styled  for  shortness'  sake — went  every 
evening  for  three  years  to  listen  at  Semi's  gate,  but  in  vain.  At 
last,  one  autumn  night,  when  the  wind  was  soughing  through  the 
sedges,  and  the  moon  was  half-hidden  by  a  cloud,  Hakuga  heard 
the  magic  strains  begin,  and,  when  they  ceased,  he  heard  the 
player  exclaim,  "  Alas  !  that  there  should  be  none  to  whom  I  might 
hand  on  this  precious  possession !  "  Thereupon  Hakuga  took 
courage.  He  entered  the  hermitage,  prostrated  himself,  declared 
his  name  and  rank,  and  humbly  implored  to  be  received  by  Semi  as 


148  Esoterieism. 

his  disciple.  This  Semi  consented  to,  and  gradually  revealed  to 
him  all  the  innermost  recesses  of  his  art. — According  to  Mr.  E. 
H.  Parker,  this  story,  like  many  another  Japanese  story,  is  but  the 
echo  of  a  far  older  Chinese  tradition.  But  whether  true  or  false, 
whether  native  or  foreign,  it  is  a  favourite  motive  with  Japanese 
painters. 

Undoubtedly  authentic,  and  very  different  in  its  tenor,  is  the 
tale  of  Kato  Tamikichi,  a  manufacturer  of  porcelain  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  eighteenth  century.  His  master,  Tsugane  Bunzaemon, 
who  owned  a  kiln  in  the  province  of  Owari,  envied  the  skill  of  the 
Karatsu  porcelain-makers  in  the  use  of  blue  and  white,  and  was 
determined  to  penetrate  their  secret.  Accordingly  he  succeeded  in 
arranging  a  marriage  between  one  of  his  pupils,  Kato  Tamikichi, 
and  the  daughter  of  the  chief  of  the  Karatsu  people.  Kato,  thus 
taken  into  the  family  in  so  distant  a  province,  was  regarded  as  one 
of  themselves  and  admitted  into  their  fullest  confidence.  Things 
went  on  quietly  for  years,  during  which  he  became  the  father  of 
several  children.  At  last,  one  day,  Kato  expressed  an  earnest 
desire  to  revisit  the  scenes  of  his  childhood  and  to  enquire  after  his 
old  master.  Nothing  doubting,  the  Karatsu  people  let  him  go. 
But  when  he  reached  Owari,  he  disclosed  to  his  former  master  all 
that  he  had  learnt  at  Karatsu,  the  consequence  of  which  was  that 
Owari  porcelain  was  greatly  improved,  and  obtained  an  immense 
sale  in  the  neighbouring  market  of  Osaka,  the  richest  in  the 
empire.  When  this  came  to  the  ears  of  the  Karatsu  people,  they 
were  so  much  enraged  that  they  caused  Kato's  wife  and  children  to 
be  crucified.     He  himself  died  a  raving  lunatic. 

Since  the  latter  part  of  the  Middle  Ages,  the  general  prevalence 
among  the  upper  classes  of  luxury,  idleness,  and  a  superstitious 
veneration  for  the  past,  even  in  trivial  matters,  together  with  a  love 
of  mystery,  produced  the  most  puerile  whims.  For  instance,  a 
certain  noble  family  at  Kyoto  kept  to  itself,  with  all  the  apparatus 
of  esoterieism,  the  interpretation  of  the  names  of  three  birds  and  of 
three  trees  mentioned  in  an  ancient  book  of  poetry  called  the 
Kokinshu.     No  sacrament  could  have  been  more  jealously  guarded 


Eta.  149 

from  impious  hands,  or  rather  lips.  But  when  the  great  scholar, 
Motoori,  disdaining  all  mumbo-jumbo,  brought  the  light  of  true 
philological  criticism  to  bear  on  the  texts  in  question,  lo  and  behold  ! 
one  of  the  mysterious  birds  proved  to  be  none  other  than  the 
familiar  wagtail,  the  second  remained  difficult  to  fix  accurately,  and 
the  third  name  was  not  that  of  any  particular  species,  but  merely  a 
general  expression  signifying  the  myriad  little  birds  that  twitter  in 
spring.     The  three  mysterious  trees  were  equally  commonplace. 

Foolish  as  the  three  bird  secret  was  (and  it  was  but  one  among  a 
hundred  such),  it  had  the  power  to  save  the  life  of  a  brave  general, 
Hosokawa  Yusai,  who,  being  besieged  in  A.D.  1600  by  a  son  of  the 
famous  ruler  Hideyoshi,  was  on  the  point  of  seeing  his  garrison 
starved  into  a  surrender.  This  came  to  the  ears  of  the  Mikado ; 
and  His  Majesty,  knowing  that  Hosokawa  was  not  only  a  warrior, 
but  a  learned  man,  well-versed  in  the  mysteries  of  the  Kokinshu — 
three  birds  and  all — and  fearing  that  this  inestimable  store  of  erudi- 
tion might  perish  with  him  and  be  lost  to  the  world  for  ever, 
exerted  his  personal  influence  to  such  good  effect  that  an  edict  was 
issued  commanding  the  attacking  army  to  retire. 

Viewed  from  a  critical  standpoint,  Chinese  and  Japanese 
esoterics  well  deserve  thorough  investigation  by  some  competent 
hand.  We  ourselves  do  not  think  that  much  would  be  added 
thereby  to  the  world's  store  of  wisdom.  But  we  do  think  that 
a  flood  of  light  would  be  shed  upon  some  of  the  most  curious 
nooks  and  crannies  of  the  human  mind. 

Eta.  The  origin  of  the  Eia,  or  Japanese  pariahs,  is  altogether 
obscure.  Some  see  in  them  the  descendants  of  Korean  captives, 
brought  to  Japan  during  the  wars  of  the  latter  part  of  the 
sixteenth  century.  By  others  they,  are  considered  to  be  the 
illegitimate  descendants  of  the  celebrated  generalissimo  Yoritomo, 
who  lived  as  far  back  as  the  twelfth  century.  Even  the 
etymology  of  the  name  is  a  subject  of  dispute  among  the 
learned,  some  of  whom  believe  it  to  be  from  the  Chinese 
characters    ^?  3£     e-ta,     "  defilement    abundant,"     while    others 


150  Eurasians. 

derive  it  from  e-tori  ^  jS  "  food-catchers,"  in  allusion  to 
the  slaughtering  of  cattle  and  other  animals,  which,  together  with 
skinning  such  animals,  digging  criminals'  graves,  and  similar 
degrading  occupations,  constituted  their  means  of  livelihood. 
We  ourselves  incline  to  date  back  the  first  gradual  organisation 
of  the  Eta  as  a  separate  class  to  a  very  early  period — say  the 
seventh  or  eighth  century — when  the  introduction  of  Buddhism 
had  caused  all  those  who  were  connected  in  any  way  with  the 
taking  of  life  to  be  looked  on  with  horror  and  disdain.  They 
lived  apart,  generally  on  the  outskirts  of  towns  or  villages,  and 
were  governed  by  their  own  headmen  ;  for  the  spirit  of  elaborate 
organisation  pervading  old  Japanese  society  penetrated  even  to 
the  dregs.  There  were  three  chiefs  of  the  Eta,  who  resided  at 
Yedo,  Osaka,  and  Kyoto.  Danzaemon,  the  Yedo  chief,  was 
privileged  to  wear  two  swords.  Besides  the  Eta  proper,  there 
were  the  Baniarb  or  watchmen,  and  the  Kawara-mono  or  vagrants, 
who  travelled  about  as  strolling  players.  Some  trace  to  these 
the  origin  of  the  modern  theatre. 

The  legal  distinction  between  the  Eta  and  other  persons  of  the 
lower  orders  was  abolished  on  the  12  th  October,  1871,  at  which 
time  the  official  census  gave  287,111  as  the  number  of  Eta 
properly  so-called,  and  982,800  as  the  total  number  of  outcasts 
of  all  descriptions.  Scorn  of  the  Eta  has  naturally  survived  the 
abolition  of  their  legal  disabilities.  It  is  a  favourite  theme  of 
latter-day  novelists,  one  of  whom,  Encho,  excellently  adapted 
the  plot  of  Wilkie  Collins's  New  Magdalen,  to  the  Japanese 
life  of  our  day,  by  substituting  for  the  courtesan  of  the  English 
original  a  girl  who  had  degraded  herself  by  marrying  an  Eta. 

Books  Recommended.  Land  Tenure  and  Local  Institutions  in  Old  Japan,  by 
Simmons  and  Wigmore,  in  Vol.  XIX.  Part  I.  of  the  "  Asiatic  Transactions."  Brinkley's 
Japan  and  China,  Vol.  II.  p.  41  et  scq.  The  Eta  Maiden  and  the  Hatamoto,  in  Vol.  I.  of 
Mitford's  Talcs  of  Old  Japan. 

Eurasians.  Half-castes  are  often  called  Eurasians,  from  their 
being  half--£z/ropeans  and  half- Asiatics  or  Asians.  Eurasians 
usually   resemble  the  Japanese  mother  rather  than  the  European 


Europeanisation.  1 5 1 

father,  in  accordance  with  the  general  physiological  law  whereby 
the  fair  parent  gives  way  to  the  dark.  The  time  that  has  elapsed 
since  Japanese  Eurasians  began  to  be  numerous  is  not  long 
enough  to  inform  us  whether  this  mixed  race  will  endure,  or 
whether,  as  so  often  happens  in  such  cases,  it  will  die  out  in 
the  third  or  fourth  generation. 

Europeanisation.  The  Europeanisation  of  Japan  is  univer- 
sally spoken  of  as  a  sudden  and  recent  metamorphosis,  dating 
from  the  opening  of  the  country  during  the  life-time  of  men 
not  yet  old.  But  this  implies  a  faulty  and  superficial  reading 
of  history.  Europeanisation  commenced  over  three  hundred 
and  fifty  years  ago,  namely,  in  A.D.  1542,  when  three  Portuguese 
adventurers  discovered  the  Japanese  island  of  Tane-ga-shima, 
and  astonished  the  local  princeiet  with  the  sight  and  sound 
of  their  arquebuses. 

The  Europeanisation  of  Japan  has  been  a  drama  in  three  acts. 
First,  the  Hispano- Portuguese  act,  beginning  in  1542  and  ending 
with  the  religious  persecution — the  extermination  rather — of 
1617-38.  This  act  offers  a  succession  of  stirring  scenes. 
Scarcely  even  in  our  own  day  have  changes  more  sudden  been 
effected.  To  begin  with,  the  art  of  war  was  revolutionised,  as 
well  for  defence  as  attack.  Japanese  feudal  barons  had  had 
their  castles  before  then,  no  doubt.  The  exact  construction  of 
those  early  castles,  stockades,  or  by  whatever  other  name  we 
might  most  fittingly  denote  such  wood  and  plaster  strongholds,  is 
a  curious  question  which  must  be  left  to  Japanese  antiquarians  to 
decide.  The  first  castle  built  in  the  style  which  now  survives  in 
some  few  perfect  and  numerous  ruined  examples,  was  that  erected 
at  Azuchi  in  the  province  of  Omi  by  Oda  Nobunaga,  who  lived 
from  1534  to  1582.  His  active  career  thus  coincided  with  the 
first  wave  of  European  influence,  the  Portuguese  having  arrived 
when  he  was  a  child  of  eight  years  old,  the  earliest  Catholic 
missionaries  (1549)  when  he  was  a  lad  of  fifteen.  Nobunaga 
became  the    leading   spirit   among   the   warriors   of  his   age ;    in 


1 5  2  Europeanisation. 

fact,  he  may  be  said  to  have  dictated  laws  to  the  empire,  and 
moreover  he  was  a  declared  patron  of  the  Christians,  though 
scarcely  one  of  whom  they  could  be  proud,  as  his  hands  were 
stained  with  many  crimes.  It  is  related  that  when  he  had  reared 
his  famous  castle,  "he  placed  the  Christian  God  [a  crucifix?] 
on  the  top  of  the  keep."*  Significantly  enough,  the  Japanese 
name  for  a  "  castle  keep/'  lenshu,  is  identical  in  sound  with 
the  translation  of  the  name  of  "  God "  adopted  by  Japanese 
Catholics.  But  whereas  the  latter  is  written  with  Chinese 
characters  having  a  perfectly  clear  and  appropriate  meaning, 
namely  -^  J£  literally  "  Lord  of  Heaven,"  a  "  castle  keep " 
is  written  ~fc  ^p  "  heavenly  protection,"  a  transcription  not 
particularly  appropriate,  which  suggests  the  thought  that  it  may 
have  been  hit  on  merely  as  an  expedient  to  distinguish  the  later 
from  the  earlier  acceptation  of  the  term.")"  Once  introduced,  the 
new-fashioned  castle  architecture  spread  rapidly  throughout  the 
empire ;  for  those  were  days  of  storm  and  stress.  Christianity 
spread  too,  some  of  the  southern  Daimyos  going  so  far  in  their 
zeal   as  to   prohibit  the  exercise  of  any  other  religion, — an  act  of 

*  According  to  another  account,  the  first  castle  in  the  new  style  was  that  built  by 
Matsunaga  Hisahide,  v/hicb  Nobunaga  improved  upon.  As  Hisahide  was  a  contemporary 
of  Nobunaga's  and  likewise  acquainted  with  some  of  the  Jesuits,  the  result  is  much  the 
same.  At  all  events  we  may  infer  that  then,  as  now,  the  imported  European  ideas  were 
translated  into  practice  with  feverish  haste. 

t  The  etymology  here  given  is  that  current  among  military  men,  and  sanctioned  by 
the  authority  of  the  principal  native  Japanese  dictionaries.  Some  recent  Japanese 
investigators  have  disputed  its  accuracy.  They  allege  that,  at  that  early  stage  of 
Japanese  Christianity,  the  translation  of  "  Ged  "  by  the  characters  ^  ^  {Tenshu)  had 
not  yet  been  made,  and  they  prefer  to  seek  a  Buddhist  origin  for  the  word  -^  t^ 
[tenshu),  "  castle  keep,"  suggesting  that  it  may  come  by  aphaeresis  from  ^£  ^  j3£, 
(Bontenshu),  "  Brahma's  protection."  To  our  mind,  the  coincidence  of  the  two  words 
at  such  a  date  is  a  circumstance  to  shake  which  would  require  weightier  evidence 
than  any  yet  adduced.  In  any  case,  the  fact  of  Portuguese  influence  on  Japanese  castle 
architecture  is  disputed  by  none,  though  some  attribute  less  importance  to  it  than 
others.  Details  of  plans,  measurements,  etc.,  were  always  kept  secret  as  far  as  possible, 
making  the  subject  peculiarly  difficult  of  investigation  at  this  distance  of  time,  more 
especially  in  view  of  the  strenuous  endeavours  of  the  government  at  Yedo  to  suppress 
all  traditions  of  former  foreign  intercourse,  and  of  the  strong  nationalist  feeling  which 
ran  in  the  same  direction  for  over  two  centuries. 


Europeanisation.  1 5  3 

intolerance  which  was  afterwards  dearly  expiated.  At  any  rate, 
the  seed  of  religion  then  sown  was  never  thoroughly  eradicated. 
Christianity  remained  as  a  subterranean  force,  which  rose  to  the 
surface  again  two  or  three  centuries  later,  when  some  entire 
districts  were  found  to  be  Christian  (see  Article  on  Missions). 
Spain  and  Portugal's  minor  contributions  to  the  Europeanisation 
of  Japan  are  no  longer  easy  to  trace,  partly  because  persecution 
destroyed  .records,  partly  because  the  subject  has  never  yet  been 
thoroughly  investigated.  A  knowledge  of  bread,  with  its  name 
pan,  certainly  came  thence.  Capes  (Jap.  kappa,  from  Portuguese 
"  capa  ")  and  playing-cards  (Jap.  karuta,  from  Portuguese  "  carta  ") 
may  be  mentioned  among  the  loans  whose  names  bewray  them. 
Sponge-cake,  whose  Japanese  name  kasuteira  remains  "Castille" 
scarcely  disguised,  is  another  humble  but  agreeable  contribution 
from  the  same  quarter ;  mosquito-nets  are  another  still  more 
valuable.  Before  their  introduction  the  fire  of  green  wood,  which 
is  still  used  in  some  remote  rural  districts,  was  the  only  known 
method — a  most  disagreeable  method  as  we  can  testify  from 
personal  experience — of  driving  away  those  insect  pests.  Doubt- 
less a  thorough  sifting  of  Japanese  customs,  beliefs,  and  products 
would  bring  to  light  a  number  of  interesting  details. 

In  the  second  act  of  the  drama  of  the  Europeanisation  of 
Japan,  the  scene  is  the  islet  of  Deshima  in  Nagasaki  harbour, 
the  actors  are  Dutchmen.  No  religious  zeal  this  time,  nothing 
military,  nothing  heroic  of  any  sort.  Even  scenes  of  screaming 
farce  are  brought  before  our  eyes,  when  the  deputation  of  Dutch 
traders  convoyed  to  Yedo  to  offer  their  congratulations  on  the 
accession  of  each  Shogun,  are  set  to  amuse  His  Highness  by 
singing  songs,  dancing,  and  pretending  to  be  drunk.  But 
such  buffoonery  was  discontinued  at  the  end  of  the  seventeenth 
century.  Some  of  the  members  of  the  Dutch  factory  were 
distinguished  men.  More  than  once,  too,  German  scientific 
investigators,  anxious  for  information  concerning  the  secluded 
empire  of  Japan,  enrolled  themselves  in  the  service  of  the  factory, 
as  a  stepping-stone  to  the  acquisition  of  such  knowledge.     Those 


1 5  4  Europeanisation. 

Japanese  who,  despite  official  interdict,  retained  a  thirst  for 
foreign  learning,  naturally  sought  the  company  of  such  kindred 
spirits,  and  the  results  to  Japan,  though  at  first  meagre,  were 
valuable  and  permanent.  The  elements  of  mathematics,  geo- 
graphy, botany,  and  other  sciences  and  of  the  all-important  art 
of  medicine  were  obtained  from  this  source.  So  were  various 
European  products, — glass,  velvet,  woollen  fabrics,  clocks, 
telescopes,  etc., — and  it  is  to  be  presumed,  European  business 
methods,  at  least  in  outline.  Even  scraps  of  literature  filtered 
through,  for  instance  Esop's  "  Fables,"  which  were  translated  as 
early  as  (about)  1670.  Precise  details  are  difficult  to  obtain, 
because  of  the  censorship  which  rigorously,  though  not  quite 
successfully,  repressed  Dutch  studies  except  in  one  closely 
watched  bureau  of  the  administration  at  Yedo.  But  we  know 
enough  to  be  able  to  say  positively  that  during  the  two  centuries 
from  1650  to  1850,  the  little  Dutch  settlement  at  Nagasaki  was 
constantly  looked  to  by  eager  minds  as  a  fountain  of  intel- 
lectual light. 

At  last,  but  not  quite  suddenly  even  then, — for  Commodore 
Perry's  famous  expedition  was  preceded  by  others  on  a  smaller 
scale,  both  Russian  and  English, — a  fresh  impetus  was  given  to 
the  Europeanisation  of  the  country  by  its  partial  opening  to 
foreign  trade  and  residence  in  1859,  and  its  complete  opening 
in  1899.  This  last,  or  Anglo-Saxon  act  of  the  drama — for  in  it 
Anglo-Saxon  influence  has  predominated — is  still  being  played 
out  before  our  eyes.  Once  more  the  great  art  of  war  has 
suffered  a  sea-change,  and  in  every  branch  of  intellectual  and 
social  activity  the  pulse  of  a  reinvigorated  life  runs  quick. 
Foreigners  have  often  stood  in  amaze  at  Japan's  ability  to 
swallow  so  many  new  ideas  and  institutions  whole.  They  have 
dubbed  her  superficial,  and  questioned  the  permanence  of  her 
conversion  to  European  methods.  This  is  because  they  fail  to 
realise  two  things, — the  innate  strength  of  the  Japanese  character, 
and  the  continuous  process  of  schooling  which  has  enabled  this 
particular   race   to   face   the    new    light    without    being    blinded. 


Fairy-tales.  155 

Another  is  thus  added  to  the  long  list  of  instances  proving  that 
great  historical  changes  never  take  place  per  sallum,  and  that 
those  nations  alone  may  be  expected  to  put  forth  flowers  and 
fruits  in  the  future  whose  roots  are  twined  solidly  around  the 
past.  From  the  dawn  of  history  to  the  present  day,  Japan,  in  her  at- 
titude towards  foreign  ideas — be  they  Chinese,  mediaeval  Portuguese, 
old-fashioned  Dutch,  nineteenth  century  European — has  shown 
herself  consistently  teachable.  Periods  marked  chiefly  by  large 
importations  from  abroad  have,  it  is  true,  alternated  with  periods 
chiefly  devoted  to  the  working  up  of  that  material  into  forms 
suitable  to  local  needs.  But  neither  process  has  ever  been  wholly 
discontinued,  and  the  result — spread  over  fourteen  centuries — has 
been  a  steady  growth  alike  social,  intellectual,  and  territorial,  with 
but  rare  intervals  of  even  apparent  relapse.  The  superficiality 
attributed  to  her  assimilation  of  imported  civilisations  exists  only 
in  the  superficial  knowledge  of  the  would-be  critics. 

Fairy-tales.  The  Japanese  have  plenty  of  fairy-tales  ;  but 
the  greater  number  can  be  traced  to  a  Chinese,  and  several  of  these 
again  to  a  Buddhist,  that  is  to  an  Indian,  source.  Among  the 
most  popular  are  Urashima,  Momolaro,  The  Bailie  of  the  Monkey 
and  Ihe  Crab,  The  Tongue-Cut  Sparrow,  The  Mouse  s  Wedding, 
The  Old  Man  who  Made  the  Trees  to  Blossom,  The  Crackling 
Mountain,  and  The  Lucky  Tea-Keltle. 

Though  it  is  convenient  to  speak  of  these  stories  as  "  fairy- 
tales,'' fairies  properly  so-called  do  not  appear  in  them.  Instead 
of  fairies,  there  are  goblins  and  devils,  together  with  foxes,  cats, 
and  badgers  possessed  of  superhuman  powers  for  working  evil. 
We  feel  that  wre  are  in  a  fairy-land  altogether  foreign  to  that 
which  gave  Europe  "  Cinderella  "  and  "  Puss  in  Boots/' — no  less 
foreign  to  that  which  produced  the  gorgeously  complicated  marvels 
of  the  "  Arabian  Nights." 

Books  recommended.  The  Japanese  Fairy-Tales  Series,  published  in  illustrated 
booklets  by  Hasegawa,  Tokyo. — The  Japanese  Fairy  Book,  by  Miss  Ozaki. — Mitford's 
Tales  of  Old  Japan,  latter  part  of  Vol.  I. — Fairy-Tales  from  Far  Japan,  by  Miss  S. 
Ballard. 


156  Fans. 

Fans.  Incidental  mention  of  fans  occurs  in  the  oldest  official 
annals  of  the  country.  Thus,  under  date  763  A.D.,  we  read  of 
Imperial  permission  being  granted  to  a  courtier  to  bring  his  staff 
and  fan  into  the  palace  precincts,  on  the  score  of  age  and  infirmity. 
Apparently  fans  were  then  tabooed  by  strict  etiquette,  which  is 
remarkable,  as  they  afterwards  became  an  indispensable  adjunct  of 
Court  dress  for  both  sexes. 

Fans  are  of  two  kinds, — two  chief  kinds,  that  is,  for  there  is 
an  immense  number  of  minor  varieties, — the  round  fan  not  capable 
of  being  shut  (uch'wa),  and  the  folding  fan  {ogi  or  sensu).  The 
fans  of  early  days  would  seem  to  have  been  all  of  the  non-folding 
type, — no  wonder,  seeing  that  the  first  natural  fan  was  a  palm- 
leaf.  The  Japanese  pride  themselves  on  being  the  inventors  of 
the  folding  fan,  which  they  assert  to  have  been  borrowed 
from  them  by  the  Chinese  as  late  as  the  time  of  the  Ming 
dynasty  (1368-1644).  A  noble  lady,  widow  of  the  youthful  hero 
Atsumori,*  is  credited  with  the  idea.  At  the  temple  of  Miei-do  in 
Kyoto,  whither  she  had  retired  to  hide  her  grief  under  the  garb  of 
a  nun,  she  cured  the  abbot  of  a  fever  by  fanning  him  with  a 
folding  fan  made  of  paper,  over  which  she  muttered  incantations  ; 
and  to  the  present  day  the  priests  of  this  temple  are  considered 
special  adepts  in  the  manufacture  of  fans,  whence  the  name  of 
Miei-do  adopted  by  many  fan-shops  all  over  the  country. 

Of  the  less  common  varieties  of  the  fan,  perhaps  the  strangest  are 
the  giant  kinds  carried  at  the  festival  of  the  Sun-Goddess  in  Ise 
and  by  the  firemen  of  Kyoto,  and  especially  the  war-fans  formerly 
used  by  military  commanders  to  direct  with  and  give  force  to 
their  orders.  Iron  was  the  material  usually  employed,  and  the 
ornamentation  consisted  on  one  side  of  a  red  sun  on  a  gold  ground, 
on  the  other  of  a  silver  moon  and  stars  on  a  black  or  dark 
blue  ground.  Ordinary  fans  are  made  of  paper  over  split  bamboo. 
Japanese  fans  excel  in  cheapness  as  in  elegance,  ten  sen  (2^d.)  being 
the  usual  price  for  a  plain  folding  fan,  three  or  four  sen  for  one  of 

*  For  an  outline  of  Atsumori's  touching  story,  see  Murray's  Handbook  to  Japan,   7th 
edit.,  pp.  78-9,  under  the  heading  Kumagac  Naozane. 


Fashionable  Crazes.  157 

the  non-folding  kind.  Fans  are  used  as  bellows  ;  they  are  even  used 
as  trays  to  hand  things  on.  A  man  of  the  lower  class  will  often 
hold  a  partially  opened  fan  in  front  of  his  mouth  when  addressing 
a  superior,  so  as  to  obviate  the  possibility  of  his  breath  defiling  the 
superior's  face  ;  but  to  fan  oneself  vigorously  in  the  presence  of  a 
superior  is  not  good  manners. 

To  attempt  a  description  of  the  quaint  and  poetical  conceits 
with  which  Japanese  fan-makers  adorn  their  wares,  would  be  to 
embark  on  a  list  of  almost  all  the  art-motives  of  the  country  ;  for 
nearly  all  are  made  to  contribute.  The  little  picture  is  often 
accompanied  by  a  verse  of  poetry  in  black  or  gold  letters,  or  else 
there  is  only  the  poetry  and  no  picture. 

Fans  have  been  extensively  used  as  vehicles  for  advertisements  ; 
but  the  Japanese  advertiser  of  the  older  school  generally  disarmed 
criticism  by  the,  so  to  say,  apologetic  moderation  with  which  he 
practised  that  most  detestable  of  all  arts  or  rather  artifices.  In  these 
latter  days,  however,  when  Europeanisation  has  corrupted  every- 
thing, one  has  much  to  suffer  from  while  fanning  oneself  on  a  hot 
day.  Art  has  surely  sounded  its  lowest  depths  when  it  comes  to 
pourtraying  a  lager-beer  bottle  on  one  side  of  a  fan,  and  to 
providing  a  railway  time-table  on  the  other. 

Book  recommended.     Fans  of Japan ,  by  Mrs.  Salwey  ;  also  a  paper  by  the  same 
in  Vol.   IT.  of  the   Transactions  cf  the  Japan  Society. 

Fashionable  Crazes.  Japan  stood  still  so  long  that  she 
has  now  to  move  quickly  and  often,  to  make  up  for  lost  time. 
Every  few  years  there  is  a  new  craze,  over  which  the  nation,  or  at 
least  that  part  of  the  nation  which  resides  in  Tokyo,  goes  wild  for 
a  season.  1873  was  the  rabbit  year.  There  had  been  none  of 
these  little  rodents  in  Japan.  Hence,  when  imported  as  curiosities, 
they  fetched  incredible  prices,  as  much  as  $1,000  being  sometimes 
paid  for  a  single  specimen.  Speculations  in  $400  and  $500 
rabbits  were  of  daily  occurrence.  In  the  following  year,  1874, 
the  government  put  a  capitation  tax  on  rabbits,  the  price  fell  in 
consequence  from  dollars  to  cents,  and  the  luckless  rabbit-gamblers 


158  Fashionable  Crazes. 

were  ruined  in  a  moment.  1874-5  were  the  cock-fighting  years. 
In  1882-3,  printing  dictionaries  and  other  works  by  subscription 
was  the  order  of  the  day.  Many  of  these  literary  enterprises  turned 
out  to  be  fraudulent,  and  had  to  be  dealt  with  by  the  courts. 
About  1883  was  also  the  great  time  for  founding  societies,  learned 
and  otherwise.  Next  came  athletics  in  1884-5.  A  raoe  f°r  waltz- 
ing and  for  gigantic  funerals  marked  1886-7.  During  these  years 
there  was  also,  in  official  circles,  an  epidemic  of  what  was  locally 
known  as  "  the  German  measles/' — a  mania  for  imitating  all  things 
German,  doubtless  because  "  safer,"  more  genuinely  monarchical, 
than  free  Anglo-Saxondom.  The  following  year  took  quite  a  new 
departure,  setting  mesmerism,  table-turning,  and  planchette  in 
fashion;  and  1888  lifted  wrestling  from  a  vulgar  pastime  to  a 
fashionable  craze,  in  which  the  then  prime  minister,  Count  Kuroda, 
led  the  way.  1889  saw  the  sudden  rise  of  joint-stock  companies, 
together  with  a  general  revival  of  all  native  Japanese  amusements, 
Japanese  costume,  anti-foreign  agitation,  etc.  This  was  the  great 
year  of  reaction.  1890  and  following  years, — railway  speculation. 
1893,  the  whole  nation  went  mad  over  Colonel  Fukushima's 
successful  ride  across  Siberia  ;  a  perusal  of  the  newspapers  of  the 
time  can  alone  give  any  idea  of  the  popular  frenzy.  1896,  stamp- 
collecting.  1 898-1 900,  garden-parties.  One  of  them  lasted  five 
days  ;  others  were  held  even  in  the  snow,  with  bonfires  lit  in  the 
vain  hope  of  warming  the  shivering  guests.  Certain  merchants  of 
Yokohama,  failing  a  real  garden,  went  so  far  as  to  hold  their 
garden-party  (so-called)  on  board  some  lighters  moored  together 
and  covered  with  an  awning  !  Another  craze  of  the  closing  years 
of  the  century  was  for  busts  and  statues, — even  silver  statues  of 
oneself.  This  last  form  of  this  particular  craze  reminds  one  of 
early  mediaeval  times,  when  prominent  princes  and  Buddhist  saints 
(despite  their  assent  to  the  doctrine  that  all  phenomena  are  a 
mirage,  and  personality  itself  a  delusion  and  a  snare)  seem  to  have 
devoted  no  inconsiderable  portion  of  their  leisure  to  painting  and 
carving  their  own  image.  Sometimes,  it  is  averred,  the  painting 
was  the  handiwork   of  a  disciple,  but  the  saint  himself  would  then 


Festivals.  159 

jAn  the  eyes.  1901,  monster  outings  for  children  and  work- 
i."st;.  One  of  the  leading  newspapers  organised  an  excursion  to 
T  ky6  for  120,000  operatives.  But  when  this  vast  multitude 
neared  the  spot,  only  5,000  were  allowed  by  the  police  to  proceed, 
ancf  rioting  ensued.  A  picnic  of  more  manageable  proportions 
was  ^tended  by  380  blind  shampooers,  who  went  out  to  see  (?) 
the  jj'ium-blossoms  at  Sugita,  and  were  made  safe  by  means  of  a 
long  rope,  after  the  fashion  of  Alpine  climbers.  1903,  youths 
nourished  on  Schopenhauer  and  Nietsche  took  to  practising  "the 
denial  of  the  will  to  live  "  by  jumping  into  the  great  waterfall  of 
Kegon  at  Nikko.  1904,  lantern  processions  to  celebrate  military 
successes. 

Festivals.     The  holidays  observed  officially  are  : — 

Jan.    1,3,  5. — New  Year. 

Jan.   30. — Death  of  Komei  Tenn5,  the  late  Mikado,  A.  D.  1867. 

Feb.  11. — Accession  of  Jimmu  Tenno,  the  first  Mikado,  B.C. 
660.*     Promulgation  of  the  Constitution,  A. D.  1889. 

March  20  (or  21). — Spring  festival  of  the  Imperial  ancestors, — 
an  adaptation  of  the  Buddhist  Higan,  or  Equinoctial  festival  of  the 
dead,  who  are  supposed  to  cross  the  ocean  of  existence  and  reach 
the  other  (hi)  shore  (ga?i),  that  is,  Nirvana. 

April  3. — Death  of  Jimmu  Tenno. 

Sept.   2^  (or  24). — Autumn  festival  of  the  Imperial  ancestors. 

Oct.    17. — Offering  of  first- fruits  to  the  Shinto  gods. 

Nov.   3. — Birthday  of  the  reigning  Emperor. 

Nov.  23. — The  Emperor  tastes  the  first-fruits  offered  to  his 
ancestors. 

The  observance  of  most  of  these  holidays  is  as  modern  as  the 
flags  that  are  flown  and  the  salutes  that  are  fired  in  their  honour. 
The  occasions  of  them  may  serve  as  a  measure  of  the  all-engrossing 
importance  of  the  Imperial  House  since  the  revolution.  There  is 
another  set  of  holidays  of  more  ancient  institution,  which,  though 
perhaps  less   observed   year   by   year,  still  live  on  in  the  thoughts 

*  This  date  is  not  to  be  accepted  seriously;  see  Article  on  History. 


160  Festivals. 

and  usages  of  the  people,  and  especially   in  their  dinners,   asrs. 
defeat  of  the  Spanish  Armada   does   in  our  English  Michaebn  s 
goose.     The  chief  dates  are  as  follows,  and  it  is  most  convemdnt 
to  begin  the  enumeration,  more  Japonico,  at  the  end  : — 

Dec.  i  3. — This  day  is  called  Kolo-hajime,  that  is,  "  the  i  )e- 
ginning  of  things,"  because  such  preparations  for  New  Yeilfgjas 
house-cleaning,  decorating,  and  the  pounding  of  rice  for  eaies 
(mochi),  are  then  taken  in  hand.  People  eat  0  koto-jiru  on  this 
day, — a  kind  of  stew  whose  ingredients  are  generally  red  beans, 
potatoes,  mushrooms,  sliced  fish,  and  a  root  called  konnyaku. 
Presents  of  money  are  made  to  servants  by  their  masters  at  this 
time  of  year.  Both  the  season  in  question  and  the  presents  then 
given  are  termed  0  seibo. 

Dec  22. — The  winter  solstice  (idji).  Doctors  then  worship  the 
Chinese  Esculapius. 

Jan.  1-3. — Termed  the  San-ga-nichi,  or  "three  days'7  of  New 
Year,  when  the  people  eat  a  stew  called  zdni.  In  Tokyo  this  stew 
consists  of  rice-cakes,  and  greens  boiled  in  fish  gravy.  More  fuss 
is  made  about  the  New  Year  in  China  and  Japan  than  in  any 
Western  country.  On  the  last  night  of  the  old  year  no  one  goes  to 
bed,  and  bells  are  rung,  and  on  New  Year's  morning  the  usual 
sweeping  and  dusting  of  rooms  is  pretermitted,  doubtless  in  order 
to  avoid  sweeping  away  .good  luck.  Gateways  are  decorated  at 
New  Year  time  with  pine-branches,  straw  ropes,  oranges,  and  a 
lobster  (the  latter  symbolising  old  age  because  of  its  crooked 
back),  and  presents  are  given  called  0  loshi-dama. 

Jan.  7. — This  day  is  termed  Nana-kusa,  or  the  Seven  Herbs, 
because  in  early  times  the  Court  and  people  used  then  to  go 
out  to  pluck  parsley  and  six  other  edible  herbs, — a  custom  to 
which  the  poets  make  frequent  allusion.  Rice-gruel,  or  congee 
flavoured  with  greens,  is  the  appropriate  dish.  (About  the  9th 
January,  the  people  resume  their  ordinary  work). 

Jan.  15-16. — The  end  of  the  New  Year  holidays.  The  16th 
is  the  (Hbko-?iin  no  Yabu-iri),  or  Prentices'  Holiday  Home.  Rice- 
gruel  mixed  with  red  beans  is  eaten. 


Festivals.  1 6 1 

Jan.  20. — Kura-biraki,  that  is,  the  day  on  which  godowns  are 
first  opened.  This  is,  however,  more  a  name  than  a  fact.  Zoni 
is  the  dish  of  the  day. 

Setsubun  is  the  name  of  a  movable  feast  occurring  sometimes 
late  in  January,  sometimes  early  in  February,  on  the  eve  of  the  first 
day  of  spring,  Old  Calendar.  Beans  are  scattered  about  the  house 
on  the  evening  of  this  day  in  ordar  to  scare  away  demons,  and  of 
these  beans  each  person  present  eats  one  more  than  the  number  of 
the  years  of  his  age. 

-V.  B.  Azuki-iucshi,  that  is,  rice  mixed  with  red  beans,  is  eaten  on  the  ist,  15th,  and 
28th  of  each  month,  these  being  the  so-called  sa;i-jitsu,  or  "three  clays."  On  the  30th, 
people  eat  buckwheat  vermicelli  {misoka-soba.) 

The  First  Day  of  the  Horse  (Hatsu-uma)  in  February,  con- 
sequently a  movable  feast.  This  day  is  sacred  to  the  Fox-Goddess 
Inari.  For  the  little  that  is  known  of  this  deity,  see  Murray's 
Handbook  to  Japan,  yth  edit.,  pp.  49  and  336. 

March  3. — The  Girls'  Festival  (Jomi  no  SckkuJ,  when  even- 
town  is  decked  out  with  dolls.  It  is  also  called  Hina  Matsuri, 
that  is,  the  Feast  of  Dolls.  A  sweet  drink  called  shiro-zake  is 
partaken  of  on  this  day. 

March  17. — This  and  the  next  six  days  are  the  already 
mentioned  great  Buddhist  equinoctial  festival  of  Higan.  On  the 
actual  day  of  the  equinox,  the  sun  is  believed  to  whirl  round  and 
round  at  sunset. 

April  S. — Buddha's  Birthday.  Images  of  the  infant  Buddha 
(Tanp-Shaka)  are  set  up  in  the  temples  for  worshippers  to  pour 
liquorice  tea  (ama-cha)  over  with  a  ladle.  This  tea  is  then 
bought,  and  either  partaken  of  at  home  in  order  to  kill  the 
worms  that  cause  various  internal  diseases,  or  placed  near  the  pillars 
of  the  house    to    prevent   ants   and   other    insects   from    entering. 

May  5. — The  Boys'  Festival  (Tango  no  Sekku),  when  such 
warlike  toys  as  bows  and  arrows  are  sold,  and  gigantic  paper 
fishes  are  flown  from  the  houses,  as  explained  on  p.  93.  Except 
New  Year,  this  is  of  all  Japanese  festivals  the  one  whose  out- 
ward signs  are  most  effective. 

June  22. — Gcshi,  or  the  summer  solstice. 


1 62  Festivals. 

July  7. — Tanabata.  The  idea  of  this  festival  is  most  poetical. 
See  last  paragraph  of  the  Article  on  Sun,  Moon,  and  Stars. 

July  13-16. — This  is  the  great  Buddhist  festival  of  Bon,  which 
is  often  termed  by  foreigners  the  Feast  of  Lanterns,  but  might 
better  be  rendered  as  All  Souls'  Day.  The  spirits  of  dead 
ancestors  then  visit  the  altar  sacred  to  them  in  each  household, 
and  special  offerings  of  food  are  made  to  them.  The  living 
restrict  themselves  to  maigre  dishes  as  far  as  possible.  The 
ceremony  of  "  opening  the  river "  {kawa-biraki) ,  as  it  is  called, 
generally  takes  place  in  Tokyo  about  this  time.  The  spectacle 
is  a  delightful  one.  Half  the  town  goes  out  on  the  River  Sumida 
in  boats  gaily  decked  with  lanterns,  while  fireworks  and  music 
add  to  the  gaiety  of  the  evening.  The  rural  population  of  most 
parts  of  the  empire  celebrate  the  festival  by  a  dance  known 
as  Bon-odor i  (see  p.  113).  It  is  usual  for  masters  to  fee  their 
servants  at  the  Bon  season.  This  should  be  done  not  later 
than  the  13th. 

July   16. — A  second  Prentices'  Holiday. 

The  Boyd  no  In,  or  "  First  of  the  Dog-days,'*  and  the  Boyd 
Saburd,  or  "Third  Dog-day,"  are  kept  by  the  eating  of  peculiar 
cakes.  The  Third  Dog-day  is  considered  by  the  peasantry  a 
turning-point  in  the  life  of  the  crops.  Eels  are  eaten  on  any 
day  of  the  Bull  (Boyd  no  Ushi)  that  may  occur  during  this  period 
of  greatest  heat. 

Sept.  9. — The  Chdyb  no  Sekku,  a  holiday  whose  appropriate 
dish  is  rice  mixed  with  chestnuts. 

Sept.   20th. — The  autumn  equinox. 

Oct.  20th. — The  festival  of  Ebisu-kd,  so  called  after  one  of 
the  Gods  of  Luck,  the  only  one  of  all  the  eight  million  deities 
to  remain  at  large  during  October,  which  is  called  the  "godless 
month "  (Kami-fia-zuki),  because  all  the  other  gods  then  desert 
their  proper  shrines,  and  go  off  to  the  great  temple  of  Izumo. 
The  reason  for  Ebisu's  not  accompanying  them  is  that,  being 
deaf,  he  does  not  hear  their  summons.  On  this  day  tradesmen 
sell    off  their   surplus    stock,    and    give    entertainments    to    their 


Festivals.  16 


customers,  correspondents,  etc.,  as  an  amends — so  it  is  half- 
jocularly  said — for  cheating  them  during  the  rest  of  the  twelve- 
month. At  present,  when  all  such  antique  customs  are  falling 
into  desuetude,  the  20th  October  has  come  to  be  regarded 
rather  as  a  day  for  what  are  called  konshinkwai — social  gatherings, 
that  is,  of  the  members  of  a  guild,  political  coterie,  learned 
society,  and  so  forth. 

November  has  several  Shinto  festivals.  The  most  notable  of 
these,  held  in  honour  of  the  Goddess  of  the  Kitchen-range 
{Heiisui  no  Kami),  and  termed  Fuigo  Matsuri,  or  the  Feast  of 
Bellows,  takes  place  on  the  8th.  Fires  are  then  also  lighted  in 
honour  of  Inari  and  other  deities  in  the  courts  of  Shinto 
temples, — the  reason,  so  far  as  Inari  is  concerned,  being  the 
assistance  rendered  by  that  deity  to  the  famous  swordsmith 
Kokaji,  for  whom  she  blew  the  bellows  while  he  was  forging  a 
sword  for  an  ancient  Mikado. 

Nov.  15. — This  is  the  day  on  which  children  who  have 
reached  the  age  of  three  are  supposed  to  leave  off  having  their 
heads  shaved.  It  is  accordingly  called  Kami-oh)  that  is,  "  hair- 
leaving,"  but  corresponds  to  no  actual  reality,  at  least  in  modern 
times.  The  Kazuki-zome,  or,  " first  veiling"  of  girls  aged  five, 
and  the  Hakama-gi,  or  "first  trowsering"  of  boys  aged  five, 
formerly  took  place  on  the  same  day ;  but  these  also  are  now 
empty  names. 

Dec  8. — The  Hari  no  Kuyb,  a  festival  at  which  women  rest 
from  the  constant  use  of  the  needle  by  entertaining  the  other 
members  of  the  household, — they,  and  not  the  men,  directing 
matters  for  the  nonce. 

Thus  ends  the  year.  The  adoption  of  the  European  calendar 
in  1873  tended  to  disorganise  the  old  Japanese  round  of  festivals ; 
for  with  New  Year  coming  five  or  six  weeks  earlier  than  formerly, 
the  association  of  each  holiday  with  a  special  season  was  destroyed. 
How  go  out  and  search  for  spring  herbs  on  the  7th  January,  when 
winter  weather  is  just  beginning,  instead  of  showing  signs  of 
drawing  to  an  end  ?     Confronted   with   this  difficulty,  usage  has 


164  Festivals. 

vacillated.  For  the  most  part  the  old  dale  has  been  retained, 
notwithstanding  the  change  thus  caused  in  the  actual  day.  To 
take  the  instance  just  alluded  to,  the  7th  of  the  1st  moon,  which 
would  formerly  have  fallen  somewhere  about  the  middle  or  end 
of  February,  is  retained  as  the  7th  January.  In  other  cases  the 
actual  day  is  retained,  irrespective  of  the  date  to  which  it  may 
correspond  in  the  new  calendar ;  but  this  entails  a  fresh  calculation 
every  year,  the  old  calendar  having  been  lunar  and  irregular  in 
several  respects,  not  simply  a  fixed  number  of  days  -behind  ours, 
as,  for  instance,  the  Russian  calendar  is.  A  third  plan  has  been 
to  strike  an  average,  making  the  date  of  each  festival  exactly  one 
month  later  than  formerly,  though  the  actual  day  becomes  about 
a  fortnight  earlier.  Thus  the  festival  of  the  7th  day  of  the  7th 
moon,  Old  Style,  is  in  some  places  celebrated  on  the  present  7th 
August,  though  really  falling  somewhere  about  the  20th  August, 
if  the  calculation  be  properly  worked  out.  Energetic  holiday- 
makers  will  even  celebrate  the  same  festival  twice, — first  according 
to  the  new  calendar  and  then  according  to  the  old,  so  as  to  be 
sure  of  keeping  on  good  terms  with  the  invisible  powers  that  be. 
Altogether,  there  is  great  confusion  and  discrepancy  of  usage, 
each  locality  being  a  law  unto  itself. 

The  list  given  above  does  not  of  course  pretend  to  be  exhaus- 
tive. There  are  local  as  well  as  general  festivals,  and  these  local 
festivals  have  great  importance  in  their  special  localities.  Such  are 
the  Gion  festival  at  Kyoto,  and  the  Sanno  and  Kanda  festivals  at 
Tokyo.  Gion  and  Sanno  take  place  in  the  middle  of  Jul}', 
Kanda  in  mid-September.  All  three  are  distinguished  by 
processions,  of  which  the  chief  feature  is  a  train  of  triumphal  or 
rather  mythological  cars,  called  dashi  by  the  Tokyo  people,  yama 
or  hoko  by  the  people  of  Kyoto.  These  cars  have  recently 
been  reduced  in  height,  because  they  were  found  to  interfere 
with  the  telegraph,  telephone,  and  electric  light  wires  that  now 
spread  their  web  over  the  great  cities. 

Book  recommended.  Astrofogia  Giapponnese,  by  Antelmo  Seyerini,  gives  details 
that  may  interest  the  student  of  folk-lore  and  superstitions,  if  he  can  read  Italian.  We 
know  of  nothing  on  the  subject  in  English. 


Filial  Piety.  165 

Filial  Piety. *  Filial  piety  is  the  virtue  par  excellence  of 
the  Far-Eastern  world.  From  it  springs  loyalty")"  which  is  but  the 
childlike  obedience  of  a  subject  to  the  Emperor,  who  is  regarded, 
in  Chinese  phrase,  as  "the  father  and  mother  of  his  people.'* 
On  these  two  fundamental  virtues  the  whole  fabric  of  society  is 
reared.  Accordingly,  one  of  the  gravest  dangers  to  Japan  at  the 
present  time  arises  from  the  sudden  importation  of  our  less 
patriarchal  Western  ideas  on  these  points.  The  traditional  basis 
of  morality  is  sapped. 

There  are  no  greater  favourites  with  the  people  of  Japan  than 
the  "  Four-and-Twenty  Paragons  of  Filial  Piety'*  (Ni-ju-shi  KaJ, 
whose  quaint  acts  of  virtue  Chinese  legend  records.  For  instance, 
one  of  the  Paragons  had  a  cruel  stepmother  who  was  very  fond  of 
fish.  Never  repining  at  her  harsh  treatment  of  him,  he  lay  down 
naked  on  the  frozen  surface  of  a  lake.  The  warmth  of  his  body 
melted  a  hole  in  the  ice,  at  which  two  carp  came  up  to  breathe. 
These  he  caught  and  set  before  his  stepmother.  Another  Paragon, 
though  of  tender  years  and  having  a  delicate  skin,  insisted  on 
sleeping  uncovered  at  night,  in  order  that  the  mosquitoes  should 
fasten  on  him  alone,  and  allow  his  parents  to  slumber  undisturbed. 
A  third,  who  was  very  poor,  determined  to  bury  his  own  child 
alive,  in  order  to  have  more  food  wherewith  to  support  his  aged 
mother,  but  was  rewarded  by  Heaven  with  the  discovery  of  a  vessel 
filled  with  gold,  on  which  the  whole  family  lived  happily  ever 
after.  A  fourth,  who  was  of  the  female  sex,  enabled  her  father  to 
escape,  while  she  clung  to  the  jaws  of  the  tiger  which  was  about  to 
devour  him.  But  the  drollest  of  all  is  the  story  of  Roraishi.  This 
Paragon,  though  seventy  years  old,  used  to  dress  in  baby's  clothes 
and  sprawl  about  upon  the  floor.  His  object  was  piously  to 
delude  his  parents,  who  were  really  over  ninety  years  of  age,  into 
the  idea  that  they  could  not  be  so  very  old  after  all,  seeing  that 
they  had  such  a  puerile  son. 

Those  readers  who  wish  to  learn  all  about  the  remaining  nineteen 

:{  In  Japanese  ko,  or  more  popularly,  oya  koko, 
t  In  Japanese  chTi  or  chtishin. 


1 66  Fires. 

Paragons,  should  consult  Anderson's  Catalogue  of  Japanese  and  Chi- 
nese Paintings,  page  171,  where  also  an  illustration  of  each  is  given. 
The  Japanese  have  established  a  set  of  "  Four-and-Twenty  Native 
Paragons  "  (Honcho  Ni-ju-shi  Kb)  of  their  own ;  but  these  are  less 
popular. 

The  first  question  a  European  will  probably  ask  on  being  told 
of  the  lengths  to  which  filial  piety  is  carried  in  the  Far-East,  is  : 
how  can  the  parents  be  so  stony-hearted  as  to  think  of  allowing 
their  children  thus  to  sacrifice  themselves  ?  But  such  a  considera- 
tion never  occurs  to  a  Chinese  or  Japanese  mind.  That  children 
should  sacrifice  themselves  to  their  parents  is,  in  the  Far-Eastern 
view  of  things,  a  principle  as  indisputable  as  the  duty  of  men  to 
cede  the  best  of  everything  to  women  is  with  us.  Far-Eastern 
parents  accept  their  children's  sacrifices  much  as  our  women  accept 
the  front  seat, — with  thanks  perhaps,  but  as  a  matter  of  course.  No 
text  in  the  Bible  raises  so  much  prejudice  here  against  Christianity 
as  that  which  bids  a  man  leave  his  father  and  mother,  and 
cleave  unto  his  wife.  "  There !  you  see  it,"  exclaims  the  anti- 
Christian  Japanese,  pointing  to  the  passage,  "  I  always  said  it  was 
an  immoral  religion.'' 

Fires  were  formerly  so  common  in  Japan's  wood  and  paper 
cities  that  the  nickname  of  "  Yedo  Blossoms "  was  applied  to 
the  flames  which  in  winter  almost  nightly  lit  up  the  metropolis 
with  lurid  lustre.  So  completely  did  this  destructive  agency 
establish  itself  as  a  national  institution  that  a  whole  vocabulary 
grew  up  to  express  every  shade  of  meaning  in  matters  fiery.  The 
Japanese  language  has  special  terms  for  an  incendiary  fire,  an 
accidental  fire,  fire  starting  from  one's  own  house,  a  fire  caught 
from  next  door,  a  fire  which  one  shares  with  others,  a  fire  which  is 
burning  to  an  end,  the  flame  of  a  fire,  anything — for  instance,  a 
brazier — from  which  a  fire  may  arise,  the  side  from  which  to  attack 
a  fire  in  order  to  extinguish  it,  a  visit  of  condolence  after  a  fire,  and 
so  on.     We  have  not  given  half.*     Were  all  records  except  the 

*  Here  are  the  Japanese  originals  of  the  above  terms,  for  the  benefit  of  the  curious: 


Fires.  167 

linguistic  record  destroyed,  one  would  still  be  able  to  divine  how 
terrible  an  enemy  fire  had  been  to  Japanese  antiquities.  Fire 
insurance,  be  it  observed,  was  not  among  the  words  connected 
with  fire  in  Old  Japan.  It  dates  only  from  the  new  regime,  being 
Europe's  contribution  to  the  vocabulary.  At  first  the  practice  of 
insurance  gained  ground  but  slowly.  It  may  be  matter  for 
wonder  that  capitalists  should  have  found  it  worth  their  while  to 
assume  risks  so  heavy.  Under  the  circumstances,  very  high  pre- 
miums are  still  charged  ;  but  despite  this  drawback,  the  people 
seem  now  thoroughly  to  appreciate  the  advantage  of  purchasing 
peace  of  mind  even  at  a  heavy  price,  and  for  several  years  past 
companies  have  been  in  operation  all  over  the  country  to  insure 
against  fire  and  other  calamities. 

To  Ooka,  the  Japanese  Solomon,  who  was  mayor  and  judge  of 
Vedo  early  in  the  eighteenth  century,  belongs  the  credit  of  having 
organised  the  fire-brigades  which  formed  so  useful  and  picturesque  a 
feature  of  Yedo  life.  Since  his  day,  fire  engines  of  European  make 
have  been  brought  into  use.  Moreover,  the  number  of  conflagra- 
tions has  been  much  diminished  of  late  years  by  the  gradual 
introduction  of  stone  and  brick  buildings  and  of  wider  streets,  and 
by  stricter  police  control.  Even,  therefore,  granting  the  possible 
truth  of  the  popular  assertion  that  in  some  parts  of  Tokyo  houses 
were  only  expected  to  survive  three  years,  that  state  of  things 
happily  belongs  to  the  past.  Still,  fire  is  an  ever-dreaded  foe.  It 
is  a  foe  at  -whose  entry  into  the  city  the  carpenters,  unless  they  are 
greatly  maligned,  have  frequently  connived,  because  it  brings  them 
work ;  and  the  peculiar  dress  and  antics  of  the  firemen  are  things 
which  no  visitor  to  Japan  should  miss  a  chance  of  seeing.  Every 
year,  on  the  4  th  January,  the  firemen  parade  the  streets  with  their 
tall,  light  ladders,  and  give  a  gymnastic  performance  gratis. 

The  most  famous  of  all  the  many  great  Yedo  fires  was  that  of 
1657,  when  nearly  half  the  city  was  destroyed  and  over  107,000 
persons  are  said  to  have  perished  in  the  flames.     The  government 

tsuke-bi,  soso-bi,  jikwa,  morai-bi,  ruisho,  s/ii/a-bz,  hi  note,  hinomoto,  keshi-kuchi ,  kwaji- 
mimai.     Fire  insurance  mentiond  just  below,  is  kwasai-hoken. 


1 68  Fire-walking. 

undertook  the  necessary  gigantic  interment,  for  which  the  grounds 
of  what  is  now  known  as  the  temple  of  Eko-in  were  selected,  and 
priests  from  all  the  Buddhist  sects  were  called  together  to  hold  a 
seven  days'  service  for  the  benefit  of  the  souls  of  the  departed. 
Wrestling-matches  are  now  held  in  the  same  place, — a  survival 
apparently  of  festivals  formerly  religious,  which  consisted  in  bring- 
ing holy  images  from  the  provinces  to  be  worshipped  awhile  by  the 
Yedo  folk  and  thus  collect  money  for  the  temple,  which  could  not 
rely  on  the  usual  means  of  support,  namely,  gifts  from  the  relations 
of  the  dead,  the  fire  of  1657  having  been  so  destructive  as  to  sweep 
away  whole  families.  The  occurrence  of  every  great  fire  in  Tokyo 
is  now  wisely  availed  of  in  connection  with  a  fixed  plan  of  city 
improvement,  involving  new  thoroughfares  and  the  widening  of 
old  ones. 

Fire-walking.  Besides  the  superstitious  notions  already 
mentioned  in  the  Articles  on  Demoniacal  Possession  and  Divina- 
tion, there  are  yet  others  which  lead  to  acts  of  a  most  surprising 
character, — to  nothing  less  indeed  than  treading  barefoot  over 
live  coals,  dashing  boiling  water  about  the  person,  and  climbing 
ladders  of  naked  swords  set  edge  upwards.  All  these  ancient 
rites  (for  they  descend  from  a  remote  antiquity)  may  still  be 
witnessed  in  the  heart  of  modern  Tokyo,  at  least  twice  every  year. 
The  fire-walking  usually  takes  place  in  the  courtyard  of  the  little 
temple  of  Ontake  at  the  foot  of  the  Kudan  hill  in  April  and 
September,  and  the  manner  of  its  performance  is  as  follows.* 

Straw  mats  are  placed  upon  the  ground,  and  on  them  a  layer  of 
sand.  On  the  top  of  this  the  fuel  is  laid,  originally  pine-wood,  but 
now  charcoal.  The  bed  is  about  1  foot  deep,  from  12  to  18 
ft.  long,  and  from  3  to  6  ft.  wide.  It  should  be  square  to 
the  points  of  the  compass.  Eight  bamboos,  with  the  fronds  still  on 
them,  are  stuck  into  the  ground  on  the  four  sides  of  the  charcoal 
bed,  connected  by  a  hempen  rope,  which  is  hung  from  frond  to 

*  This  account  is  condensed  by  permission  from  Mr.  Percival  Lowell's  curious  book, 
Occult  Jafan. 


Fire- walking.  1 6  9 

frond,  about  5  ft.  from  the  ground.  From  this  hang  forty-four 
of  the  sacred  emblems  called  gohei, — strips  of  white  paper  cut  into 
little  angular  bunches.  Some  of  the  attendants  busily  fan  the 
ilames  with  open  fans  strapped  to  the  ends  of  long  poles,  while 
others  pound  the  coals  flat  with  staves.  Then  incantations  are 
made, — incantations  to  the  God  of  Water,  who  dwells  in  the  moon, 
to  descend  and  drive  out  the  God  of  Fire.  Prayers  are  offered  up, 
and  first  one  priest,  then  another  begins  slowly  and  solemnly  to 
march  round  the  charcoal  bed,  cabalistically  twisting  and  flinging 
out  his  fingers  the  while.  Soon  all  are  engaged  in  this  act 
of  exorcism.  On  and  on,  round  and  round,  do  they  march, 
each  seemingly  oblivious  of  the  others,  each  gradually  working 
himself  up  into  a  state  akin  to  ecstasy.  When  this  apparently 
interminable  ceremony  comes  to  an  end,  each  priest  takes  a 
handful  of  salt  from  a  large  bowl,  and  strews  it  upon  the  living 
coal.  Furthermore,  a  mat  at  either  end  of  the  bed  of  coals  is 
spread  with  salt  for  those  who  are  about  to  cross  the  fire  to 
rub  their  feet  on.  The  high  priest  salts  his  feet  first,  then  steps 
boldly  on  to  the  surface  of  the  burning  floor,  over  which  he  strides 
with  dignified  gait.  The  attendant  priests  clad  in  white  follow  his 
example,  and  when  all  have  gone  over,  all  go  over  again. 

The  second  part  of  the  function,  though  less  impressive,  is  more 
amusing;  for  now  from  among  the  crowd  of  bystanders  all  such  as, 
to  quote  Mr.  Lowell's  phrase,  have  a  mind  to  try  their  foot  at  it, 
imitate  the  priests  and  cross  the  hot  crust.  Men,  women,  and  chil- 
dren, old  and  young,  a  whole  family  perhaps  in  due  order  of  pre- 
cedence, venture  successfully  along  the  line,  though  not  a  few  show 
by  their  rapid  skips  towards  the  end  that  the  trial  is  no  mocker)'. 

It  should  be  added,  for  the  sake  of  complete  truthfulness,  that 
the  ordeal,  when  seen,  is  somehow  less  impressive  than  would 
probably  be  imagined  from  a  written  description.  The  space  is 
narrow,  the  crowd  motley  and  irreverent,  and  mostly  of  the  lower 
class, — loungers,  dirty  children  with  others  on  their  backs.  The 
preliminary  beating  and  pounding  of  the  fire-bed  seems  endless  ; 
the    fanning    of    it    drives    smoke    into    one's    eves    and    flakes 


1 70  Fire-walking. 

on  to  one's  clothes.  The  heat,  too,  is  of  course  unpleasant, 
and  the  actual  fire-walking,  when  at  length  it  does  begin, 
occupies  but  a  few  brief  moments.  Be  it  understood  that  our 
object  is  nowise  to  deter  any  one  from  witnessing  what,  after 
all,  is  a  curious  spectacle,  but  simply  to  warn  him  that,  like 
other  genuine  curios,  it  must  be  paid  for.  A  similar  remark 
applies  even  more  strongly  to  the  "  Ordeal  by  Boiling  Water." 
Far  better  read  Mr.  Lowell's  account,  which  is  very  graphic  and 
entertaining,  than  devote  hours  to  seeing  the  rite  itself,  which  is 
deadly  dull,  consisting,  as  it  does,  in  the  dipping  of  bamboo  fronds 
into  boiling  water,  brandishing  them  in  the  air,  and  letting  the 
spray  fall  in  a  shower  over  the  performer's  body,  while  prayers, 
incantations,  and  gyrations  are  kept  up  ad  infinitum. 


The  preceding  article  had  just  been  written  when,  in  September, 
1 900,  it  being  reported  that  no  less  than  seven  foreigners  had  taken 
part  in  the  "  miracle,"  we  wrote  to  one  of  them,  Prof.  Percy  Hill- 
house,  of  the  Imperial  University,  Tokyo,  to  request  an  account  of 
the  proceedings.     That  gentleman's  reply  was  as  follows  : — 

"  I  went  to  the  Imagawa  Koji  temple  on  the  17th  September, 
with  a  secret  desire  to  cross  the  glowing  coals  myself;  but  though 
I  saw  all  sorts  and  conditions  of  Japanese  crossing,  I  was  unable 
to  screw  up  my  courage  quite  to  the  sticking  point  until  a  number 
of  Harvard  graduates,  who  had  carefully  examined  the  soles  of 
those  who  had  crossed,  themselves  walked  over.  I  at  once  took 
off  my  socks,  and  pushed  my  way  through  the  crowd  to  the 
end  of  the  bed  of  charcoal.  There  was  a  flattened  heap  of  sal  tat 
the  beginning  of  the  path ;  and  after  rubbing  both  feet  well  into 
this,  I  stepped  across  at  a  sharp  walking  pace  and  got  to  the  other 
end  safely.  Before  I  started,  a  priest  dusted  me  all  over  with  a 
large  mop  of  gohei ;  and  after  I  had  crossed,  the  priest  at  the 
other  end  made  me  stop  and  rub  my  feet  in  the  pad  of  salt  at  the 
end  of  the  fiery  path.  No  sooner  was  I  safely  over  than  I  crossed 
aaain  with  no  evil  result.     As  each  foot  touched  the  charcoal,   it 


Fishing.  1 7 1 

only  felt  a  comfortable  warmth  : — there  was  no  hot  sensation  at  all. 
I  am  certain  that  anybody  could  go  over  without  any  unpleasant 
effects,  if  he  stepped  quickly  enough  and  did  not  scrape  his  feet 
in  any  way.     One  must  step  cleanly,  so  to  speak. 

"  H ,  of  the  British  Consulate  in  Yokohama,  followed  me 

the  first  time,  and  later  on  a  young  lady  from  Yokohama  picked 
up  her   skirts   and   skipped    over    amid    cheers    from  the  crowd. 

H said  that  he   felt  his  feet  a  little  sore  after  he  had  come 

off.  The  first  time  I  went,  I  did  not  feel  the  least  bad  effect. 
The  second  time,  some  one  in  front  having  delayed  me  a  moment 
by  stopping  on  the  salt  patch  at  the  end,  I  felt  one  foot  slightly 
hot,  and  for  about  an  hour  afterwards  a  small  patch  of  skin  at 
one  side  felt  very  slightly  sore ;  but  when  I  examined  my  feet 
at  night,  I  could  see  nothing,  and  the  feeling  of  soreness  was 
gone. 

"  I  am  not  physiologist  enough  to  give  any  explanation  as  to 
why  we  were  not  burnt.  When  a  boy,  I  placed  an  iron  kettle 
of  boiling  water,  just  off  the  fire,  on  the  palm  of  my  hand,  and 
held  it  there  for  fifteen  seconds  or  so,  and  it  only  felt  slightly 
warm.  I  think  the  explanation  of  that  was  that  the  soot  on  the 
bottom  was  a  good  non-conductor,  and  that  the  moisture  of  the 
hand,  quickly  evaporating,  formed  a  layer  of  steam  which  prevent- 
ed actual  contact  of  the  metal  and  skin.  The  Kudan  '  miracle  '  may 
have  a  similar  explanation.  The  surface  of  the  charcoal-bed  was  at 
least  half-black,  not  red-hot,  and  the  damp  salt  may  have  provided 
the  necessary  moisture.'' 

Fishing.  Various  queer  methods  of  fishing  are  still  employed 
in  the  rural  districts  of  Japan.  In  some  of  the  central  provinces, 
baskets  may  be  seen  hung  over  a  waterfall  to  catch  such  fish  as 
attempt  to  leap  it.  In  certain  other  places — for  instance,  at 
Numata  on  the  Tonegawa — this  arrangement  is  modified  by  the 
construction  of  an  inclined  bamboo  platform,  which  produces  an 
upward  flow  towards  the  centre  of  the  stream.  Thither  the  fish 
are  carried  by  the  force  of  the  artificial  current,  as    described   in 


172  Flag. 

Murray's  Handbook.  Then  there  is  the  well-known  cormorant- 
fishing,  of  which  details  are  given  on  pp.  105-8  of  the  present  work. 
The  arrow-shaped  fish-traps  lining  the  shores  of  Lake  Biwa  are  a 
curiosity  calculated  to  strike  any  observant  eye.  So  are  the  "fish 
outlooks"  that  dot  the  coast  of  Izu.  Each  of  these  stands  on 
some  lofty  cliff  overlooking  the  sea,  where  an  experienced  man 
keeps  watch,  and  blows  a  horn  to  the  fishermen  below  to 
draw  in  the  large  village  net,  whenever  a  school  of  albacore 
has  entered  it.  A  sight  fascinating  on  account  of  the  great 
dexterity  involved,  is  that  of  the  trout-fishers  in  some  clear, 
placid  streams,  who  simply  land  their  prey  with  hand-nets. 
This  may  be  witnessed  on  the  waters  of  the  Kitayama-gawa,  just 
below  that  loveliest  of  spots,  Doro-Hatcho.  To  such  methods 
must  be  added  the  fish-spearing  practised  on  many  points  of  the 
coast,  and  the  whaling  off  Kishu  and  Shikoku,  the  whales  being 
sometimes  actually  caught  in  nets.  The  flies  used  by  Japanese 
anglers  should  also  interest  the  sportsman,  being  quite  different 
from  those  employed  by  European  fishermen.  To  an  English 
eye  the  native  method  of  fly-fishing  will  seem  rude  ;  but  it  is 
justified  by  its  results. 

Books  recommended.  Japanese  Fislieries,  by  G.  E.  Gregory,  in  Vol.  V.  Fart  I.  of 
the  "Asiatic  Transactions."  For  fishing, — not  as  a  curiosity,  but  as  a  practical  sport, — 
readers  are  referred  to  the  Introduction  to  Murray's  Japan  Ilandboolt. 


Flag.  The  Japanese  national  flag  {Hi-no-Maru)  is  a  good 
instance  of  Amiel's  axiom  that .  "  nothing  real  is  simple.'"'  The 
sun  upon  a  background, — why  should  not  the  idea  have  been 
hit  upon  at  once  by  the  inhabitants  of  this  "Land  of  the  Rising 
Sun  ?"  And  yet,  when  we  come  to  look  into  the  matter,  we 
find  this  apparently  obvious  result  to  have  been  evolved  from 
a  strangely  complicated  set  of  ideas,  slowly  changing  through 
the  centuries. 

It  seems  that,  from  time  immemorial,  the  Chinese  Court  and 
army  had  made  use  of  banners  adorned  with  figures  founded  on 
astrological  fancies, — the    Sun    with    the   Three-legged  Crow  that 


Flowers. 


r75 


inhabits  it,  the  Moon  with  its  Hare  and  Cassia-tree,  the  Red  Bird 
representing  the  seven  constellations  of  the  southern  quarter  of 
the  zodiac,  the  Dark  Warrior  (a  Tortoise)  embracing-  the  seven 
northern  constellations,  the  Azure  Dragon  embracing  the  seven 
eastern,  the  White  Tiger  embracing  the  seven  western,  and  a 
seventh  banner  representing  the  Northern  Bushel  (Great  Bear). 
The  banners  of  the  Sun  and  Moon  assumed  special  importance, 
because  the  Sun  was  the  Emperor's  elder  brother  and  the  Moon 
his  sister,  for  which  reason  he  himself  was,  and  still  is,  styled  the 
Son  of  Heaven, — no  mere  metaphors  these  to  the  early  Chinese 
mind,  which  implicitly  believed  that  the  Emperor's  conduct  could 
influence  the  course  of  the  seasons. 

The  Japanese  took  over  these  things  wholesale, — Imperial  title, 
banners,  mythological  ideas,  and  all, — probably  in  the  seventh 
century,  for  the  official  annals  incidentally  record  their  use  in 
A.D.  700.  In  process  of  time  most  of  the  elements  of  this  system 
were  dropped,  only  the  Sun  and  Moon  Banners  being  retained 
as  Imperial  insignia,  but  without  their  fabulous  inmates,  though 
the  Sun  Crow  and  the  Moon  Hare  still  linger  on  in  art.  For 
such  heathen  fancies  mediaeval  piety  substituted  effigies  of  the 
gods  or  an  invocation  to  Buddha ;  but  these,  too,  were  dropped 
when  Buddhist  influence  declined.  Thus  the  sun  (not  originally 
a  rising  sun)  alone  remained  ;  and  when,  in  1859,  a  national 
flag  corresponding  to  those  of  Europe  became  necessary,  the 
Sun  Banner  naturally  stepped  into  the  vacant  place.  A  more 
elaborate  design  —  the  sixteen-petalled  chrysanthemum,  which 
is  apparently  only  in  another  shape  the  sun  with  its  rays — 
became  fixed  as  the  Imperial  standard ;  for  conformity  to 
European  usage  prescribed  such  a  distinction.  The  military  flag 
with  its  sixteen  rays  is  a  modification  of  the  same  idea,  the  number 
sixteen  itself  being  traceable  to  Chinese  geomantic  notions. 

Book  recommended.     The  above  article  is  condensed  from  a  beautifully  illustrated 
paper  by  Mr.  W.  G.  Aston,  in  Vol.  XXII.  of  the  Asiatic  Transactions. 

Flowers.  An  enemy  has  said  that  Japanese  flowers  have 
no  scent.     The  assertion  is  incorrect;  witness  the  plum-blossom, 


1 74  Flowers. 

the  wild  rose,  and  the  many  sweet-smelling  lilies  and  orchids. 
But  granting  even — for  the  sake  of  argument,  if  for  nothing  more 
— that  the  fragrance  of  flowers  greets  one  less  often  in  Japan 
than  at  home,  it  must  be  allowed  on  the  other  side  that  the 
Japanese  show  a  more  genuine  appreciation  of  flowers  than  we 
do.  The  whole  population  turns  out  several  times  in  the  year 
for  no  other  purpose  than  to  visit  places  which  are  noted  for 
certain  kinds  of  blossom.  It  is  round  these  that  the  national 
holiday-makings  of  the  most  holiday-loving  of  nations  revolve, 
and  no  visitor  to  Japan  should  fail  to  see  one  or  other — all,  if 
possible — of  these  charming  flower  festivals.  The  principal  flowers 
cultivated  in  Tokyo  are  : — the  plum-blossom,  which  comes  into 
flower  about  the  end  of  January,  and  lasts  on  into  March ; 
the  cherry-blossom,  first  half  of  April ;  the  tree-peony,  end 
of  April  or  beginning  of  May  ;  the  azalea,  early  in  May  ;  the 
wistaria,  ditto ;  the  iris,  early  in  June ;  the  convolvulus,  end  of 
July  and  beginning  of  August ;  the  lotus,  early  in  August ;  the 
chrysanthemum,  first  three  weeks  of  November;  the  maple  (for 
such  bright  leaves  are  included  under  the  general  designation  of 
flowers),  all  November. 

The  Japanese  care  but  little  for  some  flowers  which  to  Europeans 
commend  themselves  as  the  fairest,  and  they  make  much  of  others 
which  we  should  scarcely  notice.  All  sorts  of  considerations 
come  into  play  besides  mere  "  look-see "  (if  we  may  for  once 
be  allowed  the  use  of  a  convenient  Pidjin-English  term).  The 
insignificant  blossom  of  the  straggling  lespedeza  shrub  is  a 
favourite,  on  account  of  ancient  poetic  fables  touching  the  amours 
of  the  lespedeza,  as  a  fair  maiden,  and  of  the  stag  her  lover. 
The  camellia  is  neglected,  because  it  is  considered  unlucky.  It 
is  considered  unlucky,  because  its  red  blossoms  fall  off  whole  in 
a  way  which  reminds  people — at  least  it  reminds  Japanese  people 
— of  decapitated  heads.  And  so  on  in  other  cases.  Of  wild- 
flowers  generally  the  Japanese  take  little  account,  which  is 
strange ;  for  the  hills  and  valleys  of  their  beautiful  country  bear 
them  in  profusion. 


Flowers. 


175 


A  very  curious  sight  is  to  be  seen  at  Dango-zaka  in  Tokyo 
at  the  proper  season.  It  consists  of  chrysanthemums  worked 
into  all  sorts  of  shapes, — men  and  gods,  boats,  bridges,  castles, 
etc.,  etc.  Generally  some  historical  or  mythological  scene  is 
pourtrayed,  or  else  some  tableau  from  a  popular  drama.  Theie, 
too,  may  be  seen  very  fine  natural  chrysanthemums,  though  not 
quite  so  fine  as  the  elite  of  Tokyo  society  is  admitted  to  gaze  on 
once  a  year  in  the  beautiful  grounds  of  the  old  palace  at  Akasaka. 
The  mere  variety  is  amazing.  There  is  not  only  every  colour, 
but  every  shape.  Some  of  the  blossoms  are  immense, — larger 
across  than  a  man's  hand  can  stretch.  Some  are  like  large  snow- 
balls,— the  petals  all  smooth,  and  curved  in  one  on  the  top  of 
the  other.  Others  resemble  the  tousled  head  of  a  Scotch  terrier. 
Some  have  -long  filaments  stretched  out  like  star-fish,  and  some, 
as  if  to  counterbalance  the  giants,  have  their  petals  atrophied  into 
mere  drooping  hairs.  But  the  strangest  thing  of  all  is  to  see  five 
or  six  kinds,  of  various  colours  and  sizes,  growing  together  on  the 
same  plant, — a  nosegay  with  only  one  stem, — the  result  of  judicious 
grafting.  Of  the  same  kind  of  blossoms,  as  many  as  thirteen 
hundred  and  twenty  have  been  known  to  be  produced  on  one  plant ! 
In  other  cases  the  triumph  is  just  the  opposite  way  : — the  whole 
energies  of  a  plant  are  made  to  concentrate  on  the  production 
of  a  single  blossom,  a  tawny,  dishevelled  monster,  perhaps,  called 
"  Sleepy  Head "  (for  each  variety  has  some  quaint  name),  or 
else  the  "  Golden  Dew,"  or  the  "  White  Dragon,"  or  the  "  Fisher's 
Lantern" — a  dark  russet  this — or  the  "Robe  of  Feathers,"  a 
richly  clustering  pink  and  white,  or,  loveliest  of  all,  the  "Starlit 
Night,"  a  delicately  fretted  creature,  looking  like  Iceland  moss 
covered  with  hoar-frost.  These  results  are  obtained  only  by  the 
accumulated  toil  of  years,  and  especially  by  care,  repeated  many 
times  daily,  during  the  seven  months  that  precede  the  period  of 
blossoming.  Such  care  is  amply  rewarded  ;  for  the  chrysanthemum 
is  a  flower  which  will  last  several  weeks  if  duly  sheltered  from 
the  early  frosts. 

Much  of  the  above,  doubtless,  will  be  no  news  to  the  profes- 


1 76  Flowers. 

sional  European  chrysanthemum-grower,  who  is  accustomed  now- 
adays to  handle  numerous  splendid  varieties  of  this  beautiful 
flower.  Let  him  remember,  however,  that  the  impulse  towards 
chrysanthemum-growing,  and  even  most  of  the  actual  varieties 
now  shown,  came  from  Japan  scarcely  more  than  twenty  years  ago. 

Bouquet-making  is  not  left  in  the  Far-East,  as  it  is  in  Europe, 
to  individual  caprice.  Europeans  are,  in  this  respect,  wild  children 
of  nature.  The  Chinese  and  Japanese  have  made  an  art  of  it, 
not  to  say  a  mystery  demanding  long  and  arduous  study.  Indeed, 
they  invoke  the  aid  of  Confucianism  itself,  and  arrange  flowers 
philosophically,  with  due  regard  to  the  active  and  passive 
principles  of  nature,  and  in  obedience  to  certain  traditional  rules 
which  have  been  jealously  handed  down  in  the  various  flower- 
schools.  It  is  well-worth  the  while  of  any  intelligent  enquirer  to 
peruse  Mr.  Conder's  beautifully  illustrated  work  on  this  subject, 
though,  to  be  sure,  the  whole  gist  of  the  matter  may  be  given 
in  half-a-dozen  words: — a  "floral  composition"  must  consist  of 
three  sprays,  the  longest  in  the  middle  generally  bent  bow-like, 
a  second  half  its  length  branching  out  on  one  side,  and  a  third, 
a  quarter  of  its  length,  on  the  other.  To  obtain  proper  curvature, 
the  steins  are  heated  over  a  brazier,  or  else  kept  in  position  by 
means  of  wires  and  other  artifices.  Whatever  may  be  thought 
of  the  so-called  flower  philosophy,  the  reader  will  at  least  have 
gained  acquaintance  with  a  graceful  and  intricate  art,  and  with 
a  curious  chapter  in  the  history  of  the  human  mind.  Linear 
effect,  and  a  certain  balance  or  proportion  achieved  by  means 
of  studied  irregularity,  are  the  key-note  and  the  dominant  of 
Japanese  floral  compositions.  The  guiding  principle  is  not 
harmony  of  colour. 

An  enthusiastic  local  critic,  who  is  up  to  the  ears  in  love  with 
all  things  Japanese,  opines  that  the  Japanese  linear  arrangement 
of  stems  and  leaves  stands  "at  an  immeasurable  height  above 
the  barbaric  massing  of  colours  that  constitutes  the  whole  of  the 
corresponding  art  in  the  West."  Such  a  verdict  will  scarcely 
find    acceptance   with    those   who   esteem    colour   to   be    nature's 


Food.  177 

most  glorious  gift  to  man,  and  the  grouping  of  colours  (unless 
we  set  above  it  the  grouping  of  sounds  in  music)  to  be  the  most 
divine  of  human  arts.  Neither  does  sober  enquiry  into  botanical 
fact  produce  any  warrant  for  the  hard-and-fast  set  of  linear  rules 
elaborated  by  a  coterie  of  dilettanti  in  the  fifteenth  century,  who 
had  never  looked  at  nature  but  when  "to  advantage  dressed." 
Still,  Japanese  floral  design  offers  a  subject  as  attractive  as  it  is 
original.  If  not,  as  its  more  zealous  and  intolerant  sectaries 
claim,  the  way  of  treating  flowers,  at  least  it  is  a  way,  a  totally 
new  way  ;  and  we  are  greatly  mistaken  if  it  and  Japanese  garden- 
ing do  not  soon  make  many  European  converts.  The  very 
flower-pots  are  delightful,  with  their  velvety  blue  and  white 
designs. 

Books  recommended.  The  Floral  Art  of  fapan,  by  Josiah  Conder.  See  also  a 
preliminary  article  by  the  same  author  in  Vol.  XVII.  Part  II.  of  the  "Asiatic 
Transactions." — The  Garden  of  fapan,  by  F.  T.  Piggott. 

Food.  Like  most  other  nations,  the  Japanese  take  three  meals 
a  day, — one  on  rising  in  the  morning,  one  at  noon,  and  one  at 
about  sunset.  Much  the  same  sort  of  food  is  partaken  of  at  all 
these  meals,  but  breakfast  is  lighter  than  the  other  two.  The 
staple  is  rice — which  is  replaced  by  barley,  millet,  or  some  other 
cheap  grain  in  the  poorer  country  districts, — rice  with  fish  and 
eggs,  and  minute  portions  of  vegetables  either  fresh  or  pickled. 
Beans  are  in  particular  requisition. 

Buddhism  has  left  its  impress  here,  as  on  everything  in  Japan. 
To  Buddhism  was  due  the  abandonment  of  a  meat  diet,  now 
over  a  thousand  years  ago.  The  permission  to  eat  fish,  though 
that  too  entailed  the  taking  of  life,  which  is  contrary  to  strict 
Buddhist  tenets,  seems  to  have  been  a  concession  to  human 
frailty.  Pious  frauds,  moreover,  came  to  the  rescue.  One  may 
even  now  see  the  term  "mountain  whale"  (yama-fcujira)  written 
up  over  certain  eating-houses,  which  means  that  venison  is  there 
for  sale.  The  logical  process  is  this  : — A  whale  is  a  fish.  Fish 
may  be  eaten.  Therefore,  if  you  call  venison  "mountain  whale," 
you   may   eat   venison.     Of  course  no  actual   prohibition   against 


i/8  Food. 

eating  flesh,  such  as  existed  under  the  old  regime,  obtains  now. 
But  the  custom  of  abstaining  from  it  remains  pretty  general ;  and 
though  beef  and  pork  were  introduced  at  the  time  of  the  late 
revolution,  the  fondness  for  them  soon  waned,  as  did  that  for 
bread  which  was  the  rage  among  the  lowest  class  in  1890.  The 
piles  of  loaves  then  displayed  at  every  little  cook-stall  in  Tokyo, 
for  the  delectation  of  jinrikisha-men  and  other  coolies,  have 
vanished  and  been  replaced  by  victuals  of  the  orthodox  Japanese 
type.  Probably  the  poor  quality  of  the  bread,  and  the  nasty  way 
in  which  the  meat  was  cooked,  had  much  to  do  with  this  return 
to  the  ancestral  diet. 

Of  beverages  the  chief  are  tea,  which  is  taken  without  sugar 
or  milk,  and  sake,  an  alcoholic  liquor  prepared  from  rice,  whose 
taste  has  been  not  inaptly  compared  to  that  of  weak  sherry  which 
has  been  kept  in  a  beer-bottle.  It  is  generally  taken  hot,  and 
at  the  beginning  of  dinner.  Only  when  the  drinking-bout  is  over, 
is  the  rice  brought  in  : — at  a  long  dinner,  one  is  apt  never  to 
reach  it.  When  dining  quietly  in  the  home  circle,  the  Japanese 
habitually  drink  tea  only.  Besides  that  drunk  out  of  a  cup,  it 
is  rather  usual  to  have  a  little  poured  over  the  last  bowlful  of 
one's  rice. 

The  following  is  a  specimen  of  the  bill  of  fare  at  a  Japanese 
banquet.  The  reader  must  understand  that  everything  is  served 
in  small  portions,  as  each  guest  has  a  little  table  to  himself,  in 
front  of  which  he  squats  on  the  floor  : — 

Preliminary  Course,  served  with  sake :- — suimono,  that  is,  a 
kind  of  bean-curd  soup ;  kuchi-tori,  a  relish,  such  as  an  omelette, 
or  chestnuts  boiled  soft  and  sweet,  or  kamaboko,  which  is  fish 
pounded  and  then  rolled  into  little  balls  and  baked ;  sashimi, 
minced  raw  fish ;  hachi-zakana,  a  fine  large  fish,  either  broiled 
with  salt  or  boiled  with  soy ;  uma-ni,  bits  of  fish  or  sometimes 
fowl,  boiled  with  lotus-roots  or  potatoes  in  soy  and  in  a  sort  of 
liqueur  called  mirin ;  su-710-mono,  sea-ears  or  sea-slugs  served 
with  vinegar ;  chawan,  a  thin  fish  soup  with  mushrooms,  or  else 
chawan-??iushi,  a  thick  custardy  soup. 


Food.  179 

First  Course  (Zembu)  : — shiru,  soup,  which  ma}-  be  made  of 
bean-curd,  of  fish,  of  sea-weed,  or  of  some  other  material ;  o-hira, 
boiled  fish,  either  alone  or  floating  in  soup  ;  isubo,  sea-weed  or 
some  other  appetiser,  boiled  in  a  small  deep  bowl  or  cup ;  namasu, 
raw  fish  cut  in  slices,  and  served  with  vinegar  and  cold  stewed 
vegetables  :  aemono,  a  sort  of  salad  made  with  bean  sauce  or 
pounded  sesamum  seeds ;  yaki?nono,  raw  fish  (although  the  name 
means  M  broiled  ")  served  in  a  bamboo  basket,  but  generally  only 
looked  at  and  not  eaten ;  ko-no-mono,  pickled  vegetables,  such  as 
egg-plant,  cabbage-leaves,  or  the  strong-smelling  radish  (daikon), 
which  is  as  great  a  terror  to  the  noses  of  most  foreigners  as 
European  cheese  is  to  the  noses  of  most  Japanese. 

Second  Course  (Nino  sen): — soup,  raw  fish  (but  only  if  none 
has  been  served  in  the  first  course),  and  rice. 

Such  banquets  as  the  above  are  of  course  not  given  every  day. 
At  smaller  dinners  not  more  than  half  such  a  menu  would  be 
represented.  Quiet,  well-to-do  people,  living  at  home,  may  have 
a  couple  of  dishes  at  each  meal — a  broiled  fish  perhaps,  and 
some  soup,  or  else  an  omelette,  besides  pickles  to  help  the  rice 
down  with.  The  Oriental  abstemiousness  which  figures  so  largely 
in  travellers'  tales,  is  no  part  of  Japanese  manners  at  all  events. 
To  make  up  for  the  comparative  lightness  and  monotony  of  their 
food,  the  Japanese  take  plenty  of  it.  It  is  the  custom,  too,  to 
set  food  before  a  guest,  at  whatever  time  of  day  he  calls.  On 
such  occasions  sola  is  in  request — a  sort  of  buckwheat  vermicelli, 
served  with  soy  and  the  sweet  liqueur  called  mirin ;  or  else  shiruko, 
that  is,  rice-cakes  with  a  sauce  made  of  red  beans  and  sugar; 
or  sushi,  rice-cakes  plastered  over  with  fish  or  with  seaweed  on 
which  vinegar  has  been  sprinkled.  Even  when  these  things  are 
not  given — and  among  the  Europeanised  upper  classes  they  are 
now  mostly  abandoned — tea  and  cakes  are  always  set  before 
every  guest.  Many  of  the  Japanese  cakes  and  sugar-plums  are 
pleasant  eating.  They  atone  to  some  extent  for  the  absence  of 
puddings  and  for  the  poorness  of  Japanese  fruit.* 

♦Since  about  1893  or  1834,    small    quantities   of  excellent  peaches   and   pears — presu- 


i8o  Food. 

Japanese  dishes  fail  to  satisfy  European  cravings.  Imagine  a 
diet  without  meat,  without  milk,  without  bread,  without  butter, 
without  jam,  without  coffee,  without  salad  or  any  sufficient  quantity 
of  nicely  cooked  vegetables,  without  puddings  of  any  sort,  without 
stewed  fruit  and  with  comparatively  little  fresh  fruit, — the  European 
vegetarian  will  find  almost  as  much  difficulty  in  making  anything 
out  of  it  as  the  ordinary  meat-eater.  If  Dr.  Johnson  had  ever 
partaken  of  such  a  dinner,  he  would  surely  have  described  the 
result  as  a  feeling  of  satiety  without  satisfaction,  and  of  repletion 
without  sustenance.  The  food  is  clean,  admirably  free  from 
grease,  often  pretty  to  look  at.  But  try  to  live  on  it— no  !  The 
Japanese,  doubtless,  being  to  the  manner  born,  prefer  their  own  rice 
and  other  dishes  for  a  continuance.  At  the  same  time,  they  by 
no  means  object  to  an  occasional  dinner  in  European  style,  and 
their  appetite  on  such  occasions  is  astonishing.  Experts  say 
that  Japanese  food,  though  poor  in  nitrogen  and  especially  in 
fat,  is  rich  in  carbon,  and  amply  sufficient  to  support  life,  provided 
the  muscles  be  kept  in  action,  but  that  it  is  indigestible  and  even 
deleterious  to  those  who  spend  their  time  squatting  on  the  mats  at 

mably  from  American  stock — have  been  raised  at  Kawasaki,  near  Yokohama,  to  supply- 
foreigners'  tables.  None  such  are  to  be  obtained  in  the  country  at  large.  The  native 
nashi,  though  generally  translated  "  pear,"  is  quite  a  different  fruit — round,  wooden, 
and  flavourless  ;  the  native  peach  is  first-cousin  to  a  brickbat.  Of  the  apple,  which  only 
became  common  towards  the  close  of  the  nineteenth  century,  a  fairly  palatable  variety  is 
grown.  There  are  few  cherries  (despite  the  wealth  of  cherry-blossom),  no  raspberries,  no 
currants,  scarcely  any  gooseberries,  no  mulberries  (although  the  land  is  dotted  with 
mulberry-bushes  to  feed  the  silkworms),  no  tropical  fruit  of  any  sort.  Figs  are  scarce 
and  poor,  grapes  not  abundant  except  in  the  single  province  of  Koshu,  strawberries 
neither  good  nor  abundant,  plums  and  apricots  mediocre,  the  Japanese  medlars  [biwa) 
not  to  be  compared  with  those  of  Southern  Europe.  The  best  fruits  here  are  the 
orange,  one  or  two  kinds  of  melon,  and — for  those  who  like  it — the  persimmon,  though 
it,  too,  shares  in  the  woodenness  and  coarse  flavour  characteristic  of  Japanese  fruits. 
Probably  two  causes  have  led  to  the  result  here  noticed.  The  first  is  founded  on  the 
climate,  the  best-flavoured  fruits  being  produced  in  dry  climates,  whereas  in  Japan  the 
heat  and  wet  come  together,  and  make  the  fruit  rot  instead  of  mellowing.  Thus 
European  stock,  which  has  improved  in  America  and  Australia,  rapidly  deteriorates 
in  Japan.  The  second  cause — itself  partly  dependent  on  the  first — is  that  the  national 
taste  for  fruit  is  unformed,  fruit  never  having  been  here  regarded  as  a  regular  article 
of  diet,  and  circumstances  having  accustomed  the  Japanese  to  prefer  that  such  fruit  as 
they  do  take  should  be  hard. 


Foreign  Employes  in  Japan.  181 

home.  This  would  account  for  the  healthy  looks  of  the  coolies,  and 
for  the  too  often  dyspeptic  and  feeble  bodily  habit  of  the  upper 
classes,  who  take  little  or  no  exercise.  A  foreigner  forced  by 
circumstances  to  rely  on  a  Japanese  diet  should,  say  the  doctors, 
devote  his  attention  to  beans,  especially  to  the  bean-soup  called 
miso.  Fortunately  of  this  dish — and  of  this  only- — custom  permits 
one  to  ask  for  a  second  helping  (o  kawari). 

There  is  a  circumstance  connected  with  Japanese  dinners  that 
must  strike  every  one  who  has  seen  a  refectory  where  numbers 
of  students,  monks,  soldiers,  or  other  persons  under  discipline 
are  fed, — the  absence  of  clatter  arising  from  the  absence  of  knives, 
forks,  and  spoons.  A  hundred  boys  may  be  feeding  themselves 
with  the  help  of  chopsticks,  and  yet  you  might  almost  hear  a 
pin  drop  in  the  room.  Another  detail  which  will  impress  the 
spectator  less  favourably  is  the  speed  at  which  food  is  absorbed. 
In  fact,  some  classes — the  artisans  in  particular — seem  to  make 
a  point  of  honour  of  devoting  as  little  time  as  possible  to  their 
meals.  To  this  unwholesome  habit,  and  to  the  inordinate  use 
of  pickles  and  of  green  tea,  may  doubtless  be  attributed  the  fact 
that  hara  ga  iiai  ("  I  have  a  stomach-ache ")  is  one  of  their 
commonest  phrases. 

Most  Japanese  towns  of  any  size  now  boast  what  is  called  a 
seiyo-ryori,  which,  being  interpreted,  means  a  foreign  restaurant. 
Unfortunately,  third-rate  Anglo-Saxon  influence  has  had  the  upper 
hand  here,  with  the  result  that  the  central  idea  of  the  Japano- 
European  cuisine  takes  consistency  in  slabs  of  tough  beefsteak 
anointed  with  mustard  and  spurious  Worcestershire  sauce.  This 
culminating  point  is  reached  after  several  courses, — one  of  watery 
soup,  another  of  fish  fried  in  rancid  butter,  a  third  of  chickens' 
drumsticks  stewed  also  in  rancid  butter;  and  the  feast  not 
infrequently  terminates  with  what  a  local  cookery  book,  unhappily 
disfigured  by  numerous  misprints,  terms  a  "  sweat  omelette." 

Foreign  Employes  in  Japan.  Though  European  influence, 
as  we  have  elsewhere  set  forth,  dates  back  as  far  as  A.D.  1542,  it 


1 82  Foreign  Employes  in  Japan. 

became  an  overwhelming  force  only  when  the  country  had  been 
opened  in  1854,  indeed,  properly  speaking,  only  in  the  sixties. 
From  that  time  dates  the  appearance  in  this  country  of  a  new  figure, 
— the  foreign  employe ;  and  the  foreign  employe  is  the  creator  of 
New  Japan.  To  the  Japanese  Government  belongs  the  credit  of 
conceiving  the  idea  and  admitting  the  necessity  of  the  great 
change,  furnishing  the  wherewithal,  engaging  the  men,  and  profit- 
ing by  their  labours,  resembling  in  this  a  wise  patient  who  calls  in 
the  best  available  physician,  and  assists  him  by  every  means  in  his 
power.  The  foreign  employe  has  been  the  physician,  to  whom 
belongs  the  credit  of  working  the  marvellous  cure  which  we  all 
see.  One  set  of  Englishmen — at  first  a  single  Englishman,  the 
late  Lieut.  A.  G.  S.  Hawes — took  the  navy  in  hand,  and  transform- 
ed junk  manners  and  methods  into  those  of  a  modern  man-of-war. 
Another  undertook  the  mint,  with  the  result  that  Oriental  confusion 
made  way  for  a  uniform  coinage  equal  to  any  in  the  world.  No  less 
a  feat  than  the  reform  of  the  entire  educational  system  was  chiefly 
the  work  of  a  handful  of  Americans.  The  resolute  stand  taken  by 
a  Frenchman  led  to  the  abolition  of  torture.*  The  same  French- 
man began  the  codification  of  Japanese  law,  which  Germans 
continued  and  completed.  Germans  for  years  directed  the  whole 
higher  medical  instruction  of  the  country,  and  the  larger  steamers 
of    the    two    principal     steamship     companies     are     still     com- 

*  This  forward  step  was  entirely  due  to  the  personal  initiative  of  Monsieur  Boissonade 
de  Fontarabie.  On  day — it  was  on  the  15th  April,  1875 — when  busy  with  the  prelimi- 
naries for  the  work  of  codification,  he  heard  groans  in  an  adjoining  apartment,  and 
asked  what  they  meant.  An  evasive  answer  was  returned ;  but  he  persisted,  and 
finally  burst  into  the  room  whence  the  groans  issued,  to  find  a  man  stretched  on  the 
torture-boards  with  layers  of  heavy  stones  piled  on  his  legs.  Returning  to  his  Japanese 
colleagues,  he  plainly  told  them  that  such  horrors  and  civilised  law  could  not  coexist, 
that  torture  must  cease,  or  that  he  would  resign.  On  the  very  next  day  he  sent  in  a 
memorandum  to  the  Minister  of  Justice,  containing  his  resignation  in  the  event  of 
compliance  being  withheld.  Some  months  elapsed,  the  translation  of  his  memorandum 
was  delayed,  and  many  specious  reasons  were  alleged  by  Japanese  officialdom  for  the 
maintenance  of  a  usage  so  ancient,  which  had  moreover  quite  recently  (25th  August, 
1874)  been  re-affirmed  both  in  principle  and  in  practice,  provision  having  actually  then 
been  made  afresh  for  monthly  statistics  on  the  subject !  Nevertheless,  Mr.  Boissonade's 
unremitting  efforts  succeeded  in  interesting  certain  high  officials  in  the  cause,  and 
torture  was  rendered  illegal  by  a  notification  dated  10th  June,  1876. 


Foreign  Employes  in  Japan.  183 

manded  by  foreign  captains  of  various  nationalities.  Again, 
consider  the  army  which  has  so  recently  astonished  the  world  by 
the  perfection  of  its  organisation  : — that  organisation  was  Franco- 
German,  and  was  drilled  into  the  Japanese  first  by  French, 
and  then  by  German  officers  engaged  for  the  purpose,  and 
retained  during  a  long  series  of  years.  The  posts,  the  telegraphs, 
the  railways,  the  trigonometrical  survey,  improved  mining  methods, 
prison  reform,  sanitary  reform,  cotton  and  paper  mills,  chemical 
laboratories,  water-works,  and  harbour  works, — all  are  the  creation 
of  the  foreign  employes  of  the  Japanese  Government.  By  foreign- 
ers the  first  men-of-war  were  built,  the  first  large  public  edifices 
erected,  the  first  lessons  given  in  rational  finance.  Nor  must  it 
be  supposed  that  they  have  been  mere  supervisors.  It  has  been 
a  case  of  off  coats,  of  actual  manual  work,  of  example  as  well  as 
precept.  Technical  men  have  shown  their  Japanese  employers 
how  to  do  technical  things,  the  name  of  chef  de  bureau,  captain, 
foreman,  or  what  not,  being  no  doubt  generally  painted  on  a 
Japanese  figure-head,  but  the  real  power  behind  each  little  throne 
being  the  foreign  adviser  or  specialist. 

It  is  hard  to  see  how  matters  could  have  been  otherwise,  for  it 
takes  longer  to  get  a  Japanese  educated  abroad  than  to  engage  a 
foreigner  ready  made.  Moreover,  even  when  technically  educated, 
the  Japanese  will,  for  linguistic  and  other  reasons,  have  more 
difficulty  in  keeping  up  with  the  progress  of  rapidly  developing 
arts  and  sciences,  such  as  most  European  arts  and  sciences  are. 
Similar  causes  have  produced  similar  results  in  other  parts  of 
the  world,  though  on  a  smaller  scale — in  Spanish  America,  for 
example.  The  only  curious  point  is  that,  while  Japanese  progress 
has  been  so  often  and  so  rapturously  expatiated  upon,  the  agents 
of  that  progress  have  been  almost  uniformly  overlooked.  To 
mention  but  one  example  among  many,  Mr.  Henry  Norman, 
M.  P.,  in  his  lively  letters  on  Japan,*  told  the  story  of  Japanese 
education  under  the  fetching  title  of  "  A  Nation  at  School "  ;  but 

*  Republished  in  book  form  as  The  Real  Japan. 


1 84  Foreign  Employes  in  Japan. 

the  impression  left  was  that  they  had  been  their  own  school- 
masters. In  another  letter  on  "Japan  in  Arms,"  he  discoursed 
concerning  "  the  Japanese  military  re-organisers,"  the  Yokosuka 
dockyard,  and  other  matters,  but  omitted  to  mention  that  the 
re-organisers  were  Frenchmen,  and  that  the  Yokosuka  dockyard 
also  was  a  French  creation.  Similarly,  when  treating  of  the 
development  of  the  Japanese  newspaper  press,  he  ignored  the 
fact  that  it  owed  its  origin  to  an  Englishman,  which  surely,  to 
one  whose  object  was  reality,  should  have  seemed  an  item  worth 
recording. 

These  letters,  so  full  and  apparently  so  frank,  really  so  deceptive, 
are,  as  we  have  said,  but  one  instance  among  many  of  the  way 
in  which  popular  writers  on  Japan  travesty  history  by  ignoring 
the  part  which  foreigners  have  played.  The  reasons  of  this  are 
not  far  to  seek.  A  wonderful  tale  will  please  folks  at  a  distance 
all  the  better  if  made  more  wonderful  still.  Japanese  progress 
traced  to  its  causes  and  explained  by  reference  to  the  means 
employed,  is  not  nearly  such  fascinating  reading  as  when  repre- 
sented in  the  guise  of  a  fairy  creation  sprung  from  nothing,  like 
Aladdin's  palace.  Many  good  people  enjoy  nothing  so  much 
as  unlimited  sugar  and  superlatives  ;  and  the  Japanese  have  really 
done  so  much  that  it  seems  scarcely  stretching  the  truth  to  make 
out  that  they  have  done  the  impossible.  Then,  too,  they  are 
such  pleasant  hosts,  whereas  the  foreign  employes  are  not  always 
inclined  to  be  hosts  at  all  to  the  literary  and  journalistic  globe- 
trotter, who  thirsts  for  facts  and  statistics,  subject  always  to  the 
condition  that  he  shall  be  free  to  bend  the  statistics  and  facts 
to  his  own  theories,  and  demonstrate  to  old  residents  that  their 
opinions  are  simply  a  mass  of  prejudice.  There  is  nothing 
picturesque  in  the  foreign  employe.  With  his  club,  and  his 
tennis-ground,  and  his  brick  house,  and  his  wife's  piano,  and 
the  rest  of  the  European  entourage  which  he  strives  to  create 
around  him  in  order  sometimes  to  forget  his  exile,  he  strikes  a 
false  note.  The  esthetic  and  literary  globe-trotter  would  fain 
revel    in    a    tea-tray    existence   for   the    nonce,    because  the    very 


Formosa.  185 

moment  he  tires  of  it,  he  can  pack  and  be  off.  The  foreign 
employe  cannot  treat  life  so  jauntily,  for  he  has  to  make  his  living  ; 
and  when  a  man  is  forced  to  live  in  Lotus-land,  it  is  Lotus-land 
no  longer.  Hence  an  irreconcilable  feud  between  the  foreign 
employes  in  Japan  and  those  literary  gentlemen  who  paint  Japan 
in  the  brilliant  hues  of  their  own  imagination.  For  our  part,  we 
see  no  excuse — even  from  a  literary  point  of  view — for  inaccuracy 
in  this  matter.  Japan  is  surely  fair  enough,  her  people  are 
attractive  enough,  her  progress  has  been  remarkable  enough,  for 
plenty  of  praise  to  remain,  even  when  all  just  deductions  are  made 
and  credit  awarded  to  those  who  have  helped  her  to  her  present 
position.  Why  exaggerate  ?  Japan  can  afford  to  borrow  Cromwell's 
word,  and  say,  "  Paint  me  as  I  am  !  " 
(See  also  Article  on  Europeanisatiox.) 

Forfeits.  The  Japanese  play  various  games  of  forfeits,  which 
they  call  ken,  sitting  in  a  little  circle  and  flinging  out  their  fingers, 
after  the  manner  of  the  Italian  mora.  The  most  popular  kind  of 
ken  is  the  kitsune  ken,  or  "  fox  forfeit,"  in  which  various  positions 
of  the  fingers  represent  a  fox,  a  man,  and  a  gun.  The  man  can 
use  the  gun,  the  gun  can  kill  the  fox,  the  fox  can  deceive  the  man  ; 
but  the  man  cannot  kill  the  fox  without  the  gun,  nor  the  fox  use 
the  gun  against  the  man.  This  leads  to  a  number  of  combinations. 
Another  variety  of  the  game  of  forfeits  is  the  iomo-se,  or  "  follow 
me,"  in  which  the  beaten  player  has  to  walk  round  the  room 
after  the  conqueror,  with  something  on  his  back,  as  if  he  were 
the  conqueror's  baggage  coolie.  The  dance  called  by  foreigners 
"  John  Kino "  is  a  less  reputable  member  of  the  same  family 
of  games.  * 

Formosa.  The  hazy  geography  of  early  times  distinguished 
so  imperfectly  between   Formosa    and    Luchu    that    it    is    often 


*  "John   Kino "    seems    to    be    a    corruption    of  chon  ki-na    or    cJwi  ki-na,  just  come 
here  ! ' ' 


1 86  Formosa. 

difficult  to  know  which  of  the  two  is  intended.  Equally  obscure 
is  the  early  history  of  the  island.  The  Chinese  would  seem  to 
have  discovered  it  at  the  beginning  of  the  seventh  century,  but 
the  curtain  falls  again  for  over  six  hundred  years.  From  the 
beginning  of  trustworthy  records,  the  spectacle  presented  to  us 
is  that  of  a  mountainous,  forest-clad  interior  inhabited  by  head- 
hunting savages  of  Malay  race,  and  a  flat  western  seaboard 
overrun  by  buccaneers  from  various  lands.  A  peculiar  tribe  of 
Chinamen,  called  Hakka,  permanently  settled  this  western  coast 
during  the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries ;  but  the  Portuguese, 
the  Dutch,  and  the  Spaniards,  all  of  whom,  about  A.D.  1600,  were 
striving  together  for  colonial  supremacy,  endeavoured  with  partial 
temporary  success  to  gain  a  foothold.  The  Japanese  did  likewise, 
both  as  peaceable  traders  and  as  pirates.  Takasago,  one  of  their 
names  for  Formosa,  dates  from  that  time,  having  been  first  applied 
to  a  sandy  stretch  which  was  thought  to  resemble  the  celebrated 
pine-clad  beach  of  that  name  near  the  present  town  of  Kobe. 
The  other  Japanese,  or  rather  Chinese,  appellation — Taiwan 
("terraced  bay") — was  at  first  confined  to  one  of  the  trading 
stations  on  the  coast, — to  which  is  not  quite  certain.  Our  European 
name  comes  from  the  Portuguese  navigators,  who,  with  somewhat 
exaggerated  enthusiasm,  called  what  they  saw  of  the  place  Ylha 
Formosa,  that  is,  the  "Beautiful  Island." 

Dutch  rule  asserted  itself  as  paramount  over  a  large  portion  of 
Formosa  from  1624  to  1661,  and  to  Dutch  missionaries  we  owe 
the  first  serious  attempts  at  a  study  of  the  aborigines  and  their 
multifarious  dialects.  Several  young  Formosans  were  even  sent 
to  Holland  to  study  theology,  a  circumstance  which  gave  rise 
to  one  of  the  most  audacious  literary  frauds  ever  perpetrated. 
A  Frenchman,  pretending  to  be  a  native  convert,  published, 
under  the  pseudonym  of  George  Psalmanazar,  "An  Historical 
and  Geographical  Description  of  Formosa," — every  line  of  which, 
including  an  elaborate  grammar,  an  alphabet,  and  a  whole  religious 
system,  was  pure  invention,  but  which  deceived  the  learned  world 
almost    down    to    our    own    day.     The   Dutch  were  ousted  from 


Formosa.  187 

Formosa  by  Koxinga  (Koku-sen-ya),  the  son  of  a  Chinese  pirate 
by  a  Japanese  mother.  But  his  rule  was  short-lived,  and  the  island 
passed  in  1683  under  the  control  of  the  Chinese  Government,  which 
retained  it  until  its  cession  to  Japan,  in  1895,  as  one  of  the 
conditions  of  peace  after  the  war  between  the  two  nations.  The 
aborigines  had  already  incidentally  felt  the  force  of  Japanese  arms 
in  1874,  when  an  expedition  was  sent  under  General  Saigo  to 
chastise  them  for  the  murder  of  some  shipwrecked  fishermen. 

Formosa,  as  sufficiently  indicated  above,  falls  naturally  into 
two  unequal  parts.  To  the  west  a  narrow  alluvial  plain,  richly 
cultivated  by  industrious  Chinese  living  in  towns  and  villages, 
slopes  gently  to  the  sea.  Eastwards  the  country  rises  into 
mountain  ranges  covered  with  virgin  forests  of  camphor  laurel 
and  other  huge  trees,  beneath  whose  shade  wild  beasts  and  wild 
men  fight  for  a  subsistence.  Mount  Morrison,  which  stands  almost 
exactly  under  the  Tropic  of  Cancer,  forms  the  culminating  point 
of  the  island,  and  the  highest  peak  of  the  whole  Japanese  empire, 
as  it  has  an  altitude  of  14,350  ft.,  or  2,000  ft.  more  than  Fuji. 
For  this  reason  the  Japanese  have  re-christened  it  Nii-taka- 
yama,  that  is,  the  "  New  Lofty  Mountain."  The  cliffs  of  the  east 
coast  of  Formosa  are  the  highest  and  most  precipitous  in  the 
world,  towering  in  places  sheer  six  thousand  feet  from  the  water's 
edge. 

It  is  not  for  nothing  that  so  many  nations  have  striven  for 
the  overlordship  of  Formosa.  Tea,  camphor,  sugar,  fruits  and 
vegetables  of  every  kind,  are  produced  in  immense  quantities, 
while  coal  and  gold  are  known  to  abound,  though  the  store  of 
metals  has  as  yet  scarcely  been  touched.  But  there  are  several 
indispensable  preliminaries  to  the  exploitation  of  these  riches 
by  their  present  enlightened  owners.  The  aborigines  must  be 
subjugated,  and  not  only  they,  but  armed  bands  of  Chinese 
rendered  desperate  by  real  and  fancied  grievances.  For  several 
years  things  went  wrong  with  the  Japanese  attempts  to  colonise 
their  new  dependency.  A  perpetual  clamour  rose  from  the  press 
of  every  shade  of  opinion  and  from  public  men  anent  the  waste, 


1 88  Formosa. 

the  corruption,  the  misgovernment,  and  malpractices  of  every  kind 
that  were  rampant.  Foreigners  told  exactly  the  same  tale,  adding 
details  about  the  shameless  lives  led  by  officials,  and  the 
insolence  of  the  soldiery  and  imported  coolies,  who,  peasants 
for  the  most  part  at  home,  there  got  brevet  rank  as  representatives 
of  the  conquering  race.  On  all  sides  the  cry  was  that  a  false 
start  had  been  made,  and  that  an  entirely  new  departure  was 
needed,  if  this  island — "  Beautiful,''  but  unhappy — was  ever  to 
have  rest.  Since  then  reform  has  been  earnestly  laboured  for  at 
Tokyo,  and  considerable  progress,  both  material  and  moral,  has 
been  made.  Roads  have  been  pushed  through  the  forests,  light- 
houses and  railways  have  been  constructed,  the  Japanese  school 
system  and  the  conscription  law  have  been  introduced.  Evidently, 
the  official  intention  is  that  the  incorporation  of  Formosa  with 
the  Japanese  empire  shall  be  no  mere  form  of  words,  but,  so 
far  as  may  be,  an  actual  assimilation  of  the  conquered  to  the 
conquerors. 


It  would  not  be  possible  at  the  present  da)',  in  however  brief 
a  sketch  of  Formosa,  to  omit  all  reference  to  the  Rev.  Dr.  Mackay, 
recently  deceased,  the  pioneer  missionary,  and  author  of  the  first 
general  account  of  the  land  and  its  people.  Never,  in  the  wildest 
flight  of  imagination,  could  any  layman  have  guessed  the  nature 
of  the  evangelising  method  on  which  this  excellent  man  chiefly 
relied.  It  was — tooth-drawing!!!  "Toothache,"  writes  he, 
"resulting  from  severe  malaria  and  from  beetle-nut  chewing, 
"  cigar-smoking,  and  other  filthy  habits,  is  the  abiding  torment 
"  of  tens  of  thousands  of  both  Chinese  and  aborigines  .... 
"  Our  usual  custom  in  touring  through  the  country  is  to  take 
"our  stand  in  an  open  space,  often  on  the  stone  steps  of  a 
"temple,  and,  after  singing  a  hymn  or  two,   proceed    to    extract 

"teeth,  and  then  preach  the  message   of  the   gospel 

"I  have  myself,  since   1873,  extracted  over  twenty-one  thousand, 
"and  the  students  and  preachers  have  extracted  nearly  half  that 


Forty-seven  Ronins.  189 

"  number.     .     ...     .     The    priests    and    other    enemies    of    the 

"  mission  may  persuade  people  that  fever  and  other  diseases  have 
"been  cured,  not  by  our  medicines,  but  by  the  intervention  of 
"  the  gods  ;  but  the  relief  from  toothache  is  too  unmistakable, 
"and  because  of  this,  tooth-extracting  has  been  more  than  anything 
"else  effective  in  breaking  down  prejudice  and  opposition. " 

Book  recommended.      The  Island  of  Formosa   Past   and  Present,  History,  People, 
Resources,  and  Commercial  Prospects,  by  J.  W.  Davidson. 

Forty-seven  Ronins.  Asano,  Lord  of  Ako,  while  at  Yedo 
in  attendance  on  the  Shogun,  was  entrusted  with  the  carrying 
out  of  one  of  the  greatest  state  ceremonies  of  those  times, — 
nothing  less  than  the  reception  and  entertainment  of  an  envoy 
from  the  Mikado.  Now  Asano  was  not  so  well- versed  in  such 
matters  as  in  the  duties  of  a  warrior.  Accordingly  he  took 
counsel  with  another  nobleman,  named  Kira,  whose  vast  knowledge 
of  ceremonies  and  court  etiquette  was  equalled  only  by  the  mean- 
ness of  his  disposition.  Resenting  honest  Asano's  neglect  to  fee 
him  for  the  information  which  he  had  grudgingly  imparted,  he 
twitted  and  jeered  at  him  for  a  country  lout  unworthy  the  name 
of  Daimyo.  At  last,  he  actually  went  so  far  as  to  order  Asano 
to  bend  down  and  fasten  up  his  foot-gear  for  him.  Asano, 
long-suffering  though  he  was,  could  not  brook  such  an  insult. 
Drawing  his  sword,  he  slashed  the  insolent  wretch  in  the  face, 
and  would  have  made  an  end  of  him,  had  he  not  sought  safety 
in  flight.  The  palace — for  this  scene  took  place  within  the 
precincts  of  the  palace — was  of  course  soon  in  an  uproar.  Thus 
to  degrade  its  majesty  by  a  private  brawl,  was  a  crime  punishable 
with  death  and  confiscation.  Asano  was  condemned  to  perform 
karakiri  that  very  evening,  his  castle  was  forfeited,  his  family 
declared  extinct,  and  all  the  members  of  his  clan  disbanded  : — 
in  Japanese  parlance  they  became  Ronins,  literally  "  wave-men," 
that  is,  wanderers,  fellows  without  a  lord  and  without  a  home. 
This  was  in  the  month  of  April,  1701. 

far  the  first  act.     Act  two  is  the  vengeance.     Oishi  Kurano- 


190  Forty-seven  Ronins. 

suke,  the  senior  retainer  of  the  dead  Daimyo,  determines  to 
revenge  him,  and  consults  with  forty-six  others  of  his  most  trusty 
fellow-lieges  as  to  the  ways  and  means.  All  are  willing  to  lay 
down  their  lives  in  the  attempt.  The  difficulty  is  to  elude  the 
vigilance  of  the  government.  For  mark  one  curious  point  : — the 
vendetta,  though  imperatively  prescribed  by  custom,  was  forbidden 
by  law,  somewhat  as  duelling  now  is  in  certain  Western  countries. 
Not  to  take  vengeance  on  an  enemy  involved  social  ostracism. 
On  the  other  hand,  to  take  it  involved  capital  punishment.  But 
not  to  take  it  was  an  idea  which  never  entered  the  head  of  any 
chivalrous  Japanese. 

After  many  secret  consultations,  it  was  determined  among  the 
Ronins  that  they  should  separate  and  dissemble.  Several  of  them 
took  to  plying  trades.  They  became  carpenters,  smiths,  and 
merchants  in  various  cities,  by  which  means  some  of  their  number 
gained  access  to  Kira's  mansion,  and  learnt  many  of  the  intricacies 
of  its  corridors  and  gardens.  Oishi  himself,  the  head  of  the 
faithful  band,  went  to  Kyoto,  where  he  plunged  into  a  course 
of  drunkenness  and  debauchery.  He  even  discarded  his  wife 
and  children,  and  took  a  harlot  to  live  with  him.  Thus  was 
their  enemy,  to  whom  full  reports  of  all  these  doings  were  brought 
by  spies,  lulled  at  last  into  complete  security.  Then  suddenly, 
on  the  night  of  the  30th  January,  1703,  during  a  violent  snow- 
storm, the  attack  was  made.  The  Forty-seven  Ronins  forced 
the  gate  of  Kira's  mansion,  slew  his  retainers,  and  dragged  forth 
the  high-born,  but  chicken-hearted,  wretch  from  an  outhouse  in 
which  he  had  sought  to  hide  himself  behind  a  lot  of  firewood 
and  charcoal.  Respectfully,  as  befits  a  mere  gentleman  when 
addressing  a  great  noble,  the  leader  of  the  band  requested  Kira 
to  perform  harakiri,  thus  giving  him  the  chance  of  dying  by  his  own 
hand  and  so  saving  his  honour.  But  Kira  was  afraid,  and  there 
was  nothing  for  it  but  to  kill  him  like  the  scoundrel  that  he  was. 
That  done,  the  little  band  formed  in  order,  and  marched  (day 
having  now  dawned)  to  the  temple  of  Sengakuji  at  the  other  end 
of  the  city.     On  their  way  thither,  the  people  all  flocked    out  to 


Fuji.  191 

praise  their  doughty  deed,  a  great  Daimyo  whose  palace  they 
passed  sent  out  refreshments  to  them  with  messages  of  sympathy, 
and  at  the  temple  they  were  received  by  the  abbot  in  person. 
There  they  laid  on  their  lord's  grave,  which  stood  in  the  temple- 
grounds,  the  head  of  the  enemy  by  whom  he  had  been  so  grievous- 
ly wronged.  Then,  came  the  official  sentence,  condemning  them 
all  to  commit  harakiri.  This  they  did  separately,  in  the  mansions 
of  the  various  Daimyos  to  whose  care  they  had  been  entrusted 
for  the  last  few  days  of  their  lives,  and  they  also  were  buried 
in  the  same  temple  grounds,  where  their  tombs  can  be  seen  to 
this  day.  The  enthusiastic  admiration  of  a  whole  people  during 
two  centuries  has  been  the  reward  of  their  obedience  to  the  ethical 
code  of  their  time  and  country. 

Books  recommended.  The  Forty-seven  Ronins,  the  first  story  in  Mitford's 
Tales  of  Old  Japan.  Mitford  gives,  in  his  charming  style,  various  picturesque  details 
which  want  of  space  forces  us  to  omit. — Dickins's  Chiushingura  or  the  Loyal  League 
is  a  translation  of  the  popular  play  founded  on  the  story  of  the  Ronins. — There  is  a  whole 
literature  on  the  subject,  both  native  and  European.  Of  native  books,  the  I-ro-ha  Banko 
is  the  one  best  worth  reading.  It  is  easy,  graphic,  and  obtainable  everywhere.  In  it 
and  its  sequel,  the  Yuki  no  Akebono,  the  adventures  of  each  of  the  Forty-seven  Ronins 
are  traced  out  separately,  the  result  being  a  complete  picture  of  Japanese  life  two 
centuries  ago.  It  should,  however,  be  remembered  that  these  works  belong  rather  to  the 
catalogue  of  historical  novels  than  to  that  of  history  proper. 

Fuji.  A  fat  and  infuriated  tourist  has  branded  Fuji  in  print 
as  "  that  disgusting  mass  of  humbug  and  ashes."  The  Japanese 
poet  Kada-no-Azuma-Maro  was  more  diplomatic  when  he  simply 
said  (we  render  his  elegant  verse  into  flat  English  prose)  :  "  The 
mountain  which  I  found  higher  to  climb  than  I  had  heard,  than 
I  had  thought,  than  I  had  seen, — was  Fuji's  peak."* 

But  such  adverse,  or  at  best  cold,  criticism  is  rare.  Natives 
and  foreigners,  artists  and  holiday-makers,  alike  fall  down  in 
adoration    before    the    wondrous    mountain    which    stands  utterlv 


*  Kikishi  yori  mo 
Omoishi  yori  in  ■> 

Mishi  yori  mo 

Noborite  takaki 

1  'ama  wa  Fnji  no  nc. 


192  Fuji. 

alone  in  its  union  of  grace  with  majesty.  During  the  Middle 
Ages,  when  Fuji's  volcanic  fires  were  more  active  than  at  present, 
a  commonplace  of  the  poets  was  to  liken  the  ardour  of  their  love 
to  that  which  lit  up  the  mountain-top  with  flame.  Another 
poet  earlier  still — he  lived  before  the  time  of  King  Alfred — 
sings  as  follows  : 

There  on  the  border,  where  the  land  of  Kai* 
Doth  touch  the  frontier  of  Suruga's  land, 
A  beauteous  province  stretched  on  either  hand, 
See  Fujiyama  rear  his  head  on  high  ! 

The  clouds  of  heaven  in  reverent  wonder  pause, 
Nor  may  the  birds  those  giddy  heights  assay 
Where  melt  thy  snows  amid  thy  fires  away, 
Or  thy  fierce  fires  lie  quenched  beneath  thy  snows. 

What  name  might  fitly  tell,  what  accents  sing, 
Thine  awful,  godlike  grandeur?     'Tis  thy  breast 
That  holdeth  Narusawa's  flood  at  rest, 
Thy  side  whence  Fujikawa's  waters  spring. 

Great  Fujiyama,  towering  to  the  sky  ! 
A  treasure  art  thou  giv'n  to  mortal  man, 
A  God  Protector  watching  o'er  Japan  : — 
On  thee  forever  let  me  feast  mine  eye. 

But  enough  of  poetry.  The  surveyors  tell  us  that  Fuji  is 
12,365  feet  high — an  altitude  easy  to  remember,  if  we  take  for 
memoria  technica  the  twelve  months  and  the  three  hundred  and 
sixty-five  days  of  the  year.")*  The  geologists  inform  us  that  Fuji 
is  a  young  volcano,  to  which  fact  may  be  ascribed  the  as  yet 
almost  unbroken  regularity  of  its  shape.  The  beginning  of 
degradation  is  the  hump  on  the  south  side,  called  Hoei-zan  from 
the  name  of  the  period  when  it  was  formed  by  the  most  recent 
eruption  of  which  history  tells.  This  eruption  lasted  with  intervals 
from  the  16th  December,  1707,  to  the  22nd  January,  1708.  The 
geologists  further  assure  us  that  Fuji  had  several  predecessors  in 


*  Pronounced  so  as  to  rhyme  with  "high." 

t  Other  measurements  give  about  ioo  feet  more  or  less. 


Fuji.  193 

the  same  vicinity, — Mounts  Futago,  Koma-ga-take,  and  others  in 
the  Hakone  district  being  volcanoes  long  since  extinct.  Futago, 
indeed,  still  has  a  crater  which  deserves  a  visit,  so  perfect  is  its 
shape  and  so  thickly  carpeted  is  it  with  moss  and  shrubs. 

Philology  is  the  science  that  can  tell  us  least ;  for  no  consensus 
of  opinion  has  yet  been  reached  as  to  the  origin  of  the  name 
of  Fuji — anciently  Fuzi  or  Fuzhi.  Fuji-san,  the  current  popular 
name,  simply  means  "  Mount  Fuji,"  san  being  Chinese  for 
"mountain."  Fuji-no-yama,  the  form  preferred  in  poetry,  means 
"  the  mountain  of  Fuji "  in  pure  Japanese  ;  and  the  Europeanised 
form  Fusiyama  is  a  corruption  of  this  latter.  But  what  is  the 
etymology  of  Fuji  itself?  The  Chinese  characters  give  us  no 
clue.  Sometimes  the  name  is  written  3^  J^-  "not  two,"  that 
is,  "unrivalled,"  "peerless"';  sometimes  ^^V^  "not  dying/' 
"  deathless ;  " — and  with  this  latter  transcription  is  connected  a 
pretty  legend  about  the  elixir  of  life  having  been  taken  to  the 
summit  of  the  mountain  in  days  of  yore.  Others  write  it  *&  -J^ 
that  is,  "rich  scholar,"  a  more  prosaic  rendering,  but  no  whit 
more  trustworthy.  Probably  Fuji  is  not  Japanese  at  all.  It 
might  be  a  corruption  of  Huchi,  or  Fuchi,  the  Aino  name  of  the 
Goddess  of  Fire ;  for  down  to  times  almost  historical  the  country 
round  Fuji  formed  part  of  Aino-land,  and  all  Eastern  Japan  is 
strewn  with  names  of  Aino  origin.  We,  however,  prefer  the 
suggestion  of  Mr.  Nagata  Hosei,  the  most  learned  of  living- 
Japanese  authorities  on  Aino,  who  would  derive  Fuji  from  the 
Aino  verb  push,  "  to  burst  forth," — an  appellation  which  might 
have  been  appropriately  given  either  to  the  mountain  itself  as  a 
volcano,  or  more  probably  still  to  the  chief  river  flowing  down 
from  it,  the  dangerous  Fujikawa ;  for  the  general  Aino  practice 
is  to  leave  even  conspicuous  mountains  unnamed,  but  carefully 
to  name  all  the  rivers.  The  letter-changes  from  Aino  push  to 
classical  Fuzi  are  according  to  Japanese  rule,  whereas  the  change 
from  Huchi  to  Fuzi  would  be  abnormal.  The  very  circumstance, 
too,  of  the  former  etymology  appealing  less  to  the  imagination 
is  really  in  its  favour. 


194  Fuji. 

A  Japanese  tradition  (of  which,  however,  there  is  no  written 
notice  earlier  than  A.D.  1652)  affirms  that  Fuji  arose  from  the 
earth  in  a  single  night  some  time  about  300  B.C.,  while  Lake 
Biwa  near  Kyoto  sank  simultaneously.  May  we  not  here  have 
an  echo  of  some  early  eruption,  which  resulted  in  the  formation, 
not  indeed  of  Lake  Biwa  distant  a  hundred  and  forty  miles,  but 
of  one  of  the  numerous  small  lakes  at  the  foot  of  the  mountain  ? 

The  following  miscellaneous  items  will  perhaps  interest  some 
readers  : — The  Japanese  are  fond  of  comparing  Fuji  to  an  inverted 
fan. — Fuji  is  inhabited  by  a  lovely  goddess  named  Ko-no-hana- 
sakn-ya-hime,  which,  being  interpreted,  means  "  the  Princess  who 
Makes  the  Blossoms  of  the  Trees  to  Flower/'  She  is  also  called 
Sengen  or  Asama,  and  numerous  shrines  are  dedicated  to  her  in 
many  provinces.* — The  peasants  of  the  neighbouring  country-side 
often  speak  of  Fuji  simply  as  O  Yama,  "  the  Honourable  Mountain," 
or  "the  Mountain,"'  instead  of  mentioning  its  proper  name. — One 
of  Hokusai's  best  picture-books  is  his  Fuji  Hyakkei,  or  "  Hundred 
Views  of  Fuji,"  executed  when  he  had  reached  the  age  of  seven- 
ty-six. In  it,  the  grand  mountain  stands  depicted  from  every 
point  of  view  and  under  every  possible  circumstance  and  a  few 
impossible  ones  ;  for  instance,  the  artist  gives  us  Fuji  in  process 
of  being  ascended  by  a  dragon.  Copies  of  this  book  are  common, 
but  good  ones  are  rather  scarce. — According  to  a  popular  supersti- 
tion, the  ashes  brought  down  during  the  day  by  the  tread  of 
pilgrims'  feet  re-ascend  spontaneously  at  night. — The  mountain 
is  divided  into  ten  stations,  and  formerly  no  woman  was  allowed 
to  climb  higher  than  the  eighth.  Lady  Parkes  was  the  first 
woman  to  tread  the  summit.  This  was  in  October,  1867. — Steam 
sufficiently  hot  to  cook  an  egg  still  issues  from  several  spots  on 
the  crater  lip. — The  Japanese  have  enriched  their  language  by 
coining  words  for  special  aspects  of  their  favourite  mountain. 
Thus  kagami-Fuji,    literally    "  mirror    Fuji,"  means  the  reflection 

*  May  it  be  a  misunderstood  echo  of  this  legend  that  has  led  some  modern  English 
writers  to  speak  of  Mount  Fuji  itself  as  "  she,"  than  which  nothing  can  be  less  consonant 
with  Japanese  modes  of  thought? 


Fun. 


95 


of  Fuji  in  Lake  Hakone.  Kage-Fuji,  or  "shadow  Fuji,"  denotes 
a  beautiful  phenomenon, — the  gigantic  shadow  cast  by  the  cone  at 
sunrise  on  the  sea  of  clouds  and  mist  below.  Hidari  Fuji,  "  left- 
handed  Fuji,"  is  the  name  given  to  the  mountain  at  the  village  of 
Nango,  for  the  reason  that  that  is  the  only  place  on  the  Tokaido 
where,  owing  to  a  sharp  twist  in  the  road,  Fuji  appears  on  the  left 
hand  of  the  traveller  bound  from  Tokyo  to  Kyoto,  instead  of  on 
his  right. — -From  12,000  to  18,000  persons  ascend  Fuji  yearly,  the 
majority  being  pilgrims. 

The  foregoing  items  are  merely  jotted  down  haphazard,  as 
specimens  of  the  lore  connected  with  Japan's  most  famous 
volcano.  To  do  justice  to  it  geologically,  botanically,  histori- 
cally, archaeologically,  would  require  a  monograph  at  least  as  long 
as  this  volume. 

Books  recommended.  Murray's  Handbook  for  Japan,  7th  edit.,  p.  164  et  seq. — 
For  beautiful  collotypes  of  Fuji,  see  The.  Volcanoes  of  Japan,  Part  I.  Fujisan,  by 
Ogawa,  Milne,  and  Burton. 

Fun.  Serious  ideas  do  for  export.  A  nation's  fun  is  for  home 
consumption  only  : — it  would  evaporate  before  it  could  be  convey- 
ed across  the  border.  For  this  reason,  we  must  abandon  the 
endeavour  to  give  the  foreign  reader  any  full  and  particular 
account  of  the  Japanese  mind  on  its  comic  side.  Perhaps  the 
best  plan  would  be  to  say  what  Japanese  fun  isn't.  It  certainly  does 
not  in  the  very  faintest  degree  resemble  French  esprit,  that  child 
born  of  pure  intellect  and  social  refinement,  and  reared  in  the  salon 
where  conversation  rises  to  the  level  of  a  fine  art,  where  every  word 
is  a  rapier,  every  touch  light  as  air.  Shall  we  compare  it  with  the 
grim  mixture  which  we  Northerners  call  humour, — the  grotesque 
suffused  with  the  pathetic  ?  It  may  seem  a  little  nearer  akin  to 
that.  But  no, — it  lacks  alike  the  hidden  tear  and  the  self-criticism 
of  humour  : — it  has  no  irony,  no  side-lights.  It  is  more  like  what 
we  may  picture  to  ourselves  in  the  noisy  revelling  of  the  old 
Roman  saturnalia, — the  broad  jest,  the  outrageous  pun,  the 
practical  joke,  the  loud  guffaw, 

"Quips,  and  cranks,  and  wanton  wiles," 


196  Fun. 

snatches  of  half-meaningless  song,  buffoonery,  tomfoolery,  high 
jinks  of  every  sort,  a  very  carnival  of  uproarious  merriment.  It  is 
artless,  it  is  thoroughly  popular,  in  fact  plebeian.  Circumstances 
forced  it  to  be  so.  The  old  Japanese  nobility  were  nowise  given 
to  laughter.  "  Life  is  real,  life  is  earnest,"  was  their  motto ;  and 
what  a  deadly  dull  life  it  must  have  been  !  To  begin  with,  it 
was  a  society  minus  the  fair  sex.  To  admire  the  Court  ladies' 
toilettes,  to  hang  on  their  smiles,  perhaps  whisper  some  witty 
gallantry  in  a  noble  dame's  ear,  formed  no  part  of  a  young 
Daimyo's  order  of  the  day  at  the  Shogun's  Court.  You  can  see 
him  still  on  the  stage ;  for  the  tradition  remains,  though  the 
personage  himself  has  vanished  utterly.  There  he  sits, — his 
straight  back  a  perfect  lesson  of  deportment,  his  countenance 
impassable,  his  few  gestures  stiff  as  the  starch  of  his  marvellous 
robes,  his  whole  being  hedged  round  with  the  prescriptions  of 
an  elaborate  and  rigid  etiquette.  Remember,  too,  that  the 
government  was  a  despotism  which  refused  to  be  tempered 
even  with  epigram  : — a  single  inappropriate  jest  might  send  you 
to  languish  in  exile  on  one  of  the  Seven  Isles  of  Izu  for  the 
rest  of  your  natural  life.  Spies  swarmed  everywhere ;  the  walls 
— in  these  paper  houses — almost  literally  had  ears.  The  pleasures 
(so-called)  of  high  life  were  ceremonies  well-nigh  as  solemn  as 
the  actual  ceremonial  of  government, — the  stately  No,  or  lyric 
drama,  with  its  statuesque  players  also  in  starched  robes  and 
chanting  in  a  dialect  dead  some  centuries  before,  if  indeed  it  ever 
had  been  living  ;  or  else  the  tea  ceremonies,  or  the  arrangement  of 
flowers  in  obedience  to  the  principles  of  philosophy,  or  the  com- 
position of  verses  after  the  model  of  the  antique,  or  the  viewing 
of  scrolls  painted  according  to  ancient  Chinese  canons.  The 
whole  life  in  fact  was  swathed  in  formalism,  like  a  mummy  in  its 
grave-clothes.     The  mere  thought  of  it  is  enough  to  stifle  mirth.* 


*  Though  the  Japanese  are  respecters  of  dignities,  we  have  ourselves  heard  some 
A\ho  had  had  personal  experience  of  life  in  a  Daimyo's  palace  under  the  old  regime, 
apply  to  it  the  popular  verse,  Kiite  gokurakrt.  mite  ji'goku,  that  is  "Heav'n  to  hear  tell 
about,  but  Hell  to  see." 


Fun.  197 

Weighed  down  by  this  incubus  at  the  top,  the  national  spirits 
sought  a  vent  in  the  lower  strata  of  society.  In  the  inimitable 
sketch-book  of  Hokusai,  the  bourgeois  artist  who  threw  all  classical 
rules  to  the  winds,  we  see  the  sort  of  people  who  really  "  had  a 
good  time"  while  their  betters  bored  themselves  to  extinction, 
namely,  the  Japanese  shopkeepers  and  artisans.  We  see  their 
homely  jokes,  their  drunken  sprees,  their  occasional  sly  hits  at 
superiors,  as  when,  for  example,  a  group  of  street  Arabs  is  depicted 
making  fun  of  some  Confucian  sage  behind  his  back,  or  as  when 
the  stately  Daimyo's  procession  becomes  a  procession  of  grass- 
hoppers bearing  a  mantis  in  a  basket.  The  theatre,  which  no 
gentleman  ever  entered,  was  their  happy  hunting-ground,  the 
pieces  being  written  expressly  to  suit  them,  so  that  what  nourished 
on  the  boards  was,  as  may  be  supposed,  not  precisely  a  classic 
taste.  The  same  in  literature  : — we  must  turn  our  backs  on  the 
books  written  for  the  upper  class,  and  betake  ourselves  to  vulgar 
company,  if  we  want  to  be  amused.  Often,  no  doubt,  the  expres- 
sions are  coarse.  Nevertheless,  let  us  give  honour  where  honour  is 
due.  Though  spades  are  called  spades,  we  rarely,  if  ever,  encounter 
any  attractive  refinement  of  wickedness. 

It  will  have  been  gathered  that  most  of  the  European  forms  of 
fun  have  Japanese  parallels.  Japanese  puns,  for  instance,  are  not 
so  very  unlike  our  own,  excepting  one  class  which  rests  on  the 
shapes  of  the  Chinese  written  characters.  Their  comedies  are  of 
two  kinds.  The  more  modern  ones  are  genuine  comedies  of 
manners  ;  those  handed  down  from  the  Middle  Ages,  and  ranking 
as  semi-classical  because  acted  as  interludes  to  the  No,  or  lyric 
dramas,  are  of  the  nature  of  broad  farce, — mere  outline  sketches  of 
some  little  drollery,  in  which  a  leading  part  is  generally  played 
by  the  man-servant  Tarokaja,  a  sort  of  Japanese  Leporello,  and 
which  always  ends  in  a  cut  and  run.  Japanese  comic  poetry  is 
mostly  untranslatable.  Fortunately  their  comic  art  speaks  a 
dialect  which  all  can  more  or  less  understand,  though  doubtless 
acquaintance  with  Japanese  manners  and  customs,  traditions,  and 
superstitions  will  add  much  to  an  appreciation  of  the  artists'  verve. 


198  Fun. 

And  here  we  must  leave — very  inadequate!}-  treated — a  subject 
of  peculiar  interest.  To  undertake  the  explanation  of  any 
Japanese  puns  or  other  jokes,  would  be  a  laborious  business  and 
cruel  to  the  reader, — still  more  cruel  to  the  jokes.  We  have 
thought,  howrever,  that  some  amusement  might  be  derived  from 
a  perusal  of  the  following  specimen  of  the  mediaeval  farces.  The 
translation  is  literal.* 

RIBS  AND  SKIN.     {HONE  K AW  A.) 

Dramatis  Persons. 

The  Rector  of  a  Buddhist  Temple. 

His  Curate.     Three  of  the  Parishioners. 

Scene. — The  Temple. 

Rector. — I  am  rector  of  this  temple.  I  have  to  call  my  curate,  to  make  a 
communication  to  him.     Curate  !  are  you  there  ?  are  you  there  ?  Halloo  ! 

Curate. — Here  am  I !     What  is  your  reason  for  being  pleased  to  call  me? 

Rector. — My  reason  for  calling  you  is  just  simply  this  : — I,  unworthy 
priest  that  I  am,  am  already  stricken  in  years,  and  the  duties  of  the  temple 
service  weigh  heavily  upon  me.  So  do  you  please  to  understand  that,  from 
to-day,  I  resign  this  benefice  in  your  favour. 

Citrate. — I  feci  deeply  indebted  to  Your  Reverence.  But  as  I  am  still 
deficient  in  learning,  and  as,  moreover,  no  time,  however  late,  would  seem  too 
late  to  me,  I  beg  of  you  to  be  so  kind  as  to  delay  this  change. 

Rector. — Nothing  could  please  me  more  than  your  most  charming  answer. 
But  you  must  know  that,  though  retiring  from  the  rectorship,  I  do  not  intend 
to  leave  the  temple.  I  shall  simply  take  up  my  abode  in  the  back  apartment ; 
so,  if  there  should  be  any  business  of  any  kind,  please  to  let  me  know. 

Curate. — Well,  if  it  must  be  so,  I  will  act  in  accordance  with  your  august 
desire. 

Rector. — And  mind  (though  it  can  scarcely  be  necessary  for  me  to  say  so) 
that  you  do  everything  in  such  a  manner  as  to  please  the  parishioners,  and 
make  the  temple  prosperous. 

Ctirate. — Pray  feel  no  uneasiness  on  that  head  !  I  will  manage  things  in 
such  a  way  as  to  please  the  parishioners  right  well. 

Rector. — Well,  then,  I  retire  without  further  delay.  So,  if  there  should  be 
anything  you  want  to  ask,  come  and  call  me. 

*  It  was  first  published  by  us  a  quarter  of  a  century  ago,  in  the  "  Asiatic  Transac- 
tions," and  afterwards  in  a  work  entitled  The  Classical  Poetry  of  the  ya/anese,  which 
has  long  been  out  of  print. 


Fun.  199 

Citrate. — Your  commands  are  laid  to  heart. 

Rector. — And  if  any  parishioner  should  call,  please  to  let  me  know. 

Curate. — Your  injunctions  shall  be  kept  in  mind. — Ha  !  ha  !  this  is  delight- 
ful !  To  think  of  the  joy  of  his  ceding  the  benefice  to  me  to-day,  just  as  I  was 
saying  to  myself,  "  When  will  the  rector  resign  in  my  favour  ?  when  will  he 
resign  in  my  favour?"  The  parishioners,  when  they  hear  of  it,  are  sure  to  be 
charmed ;  so  I  mean  to  manage  in  such  a  way  as  to  give  them  all  satisfaction. 
********* 

First  Parishioner. — I  am  a  resident  in  this  neighbourhood.  1  am  on  my 
way  to  a  certain  place  on  business  ;  but  as  it  has  suddenly  begun  to  threaten 
rain,  I  think  I  will  look  in  at  the  parish  temple,  and  borrow  an  umbrella.  Ah  ! 
here  I  am.     Hoy  !  admittance. 

Curate. — Oh  !  there  is  some  one  hallooing  at  the  gate  !  Who  is  that  asking 
for  admittance?     Who  is  that  hallooing? 

First  Par.— It  is  I. 

Curate. — Oh  !  you  are  indeed  welcome  ! 

First  Par. — It  is  long  since  I  last  had  the  honour  of  coming  to  enquire 
after  you  !  but  I  trust  that  the  worthy  rector  and  yourself  are  still  in  the  enjoy- 
ment of  good  health. 

Curate. — Oh  yes  !  we  both  continue  well.  But  I  must  tell  you  that,  moved 
by  some  impulse  or  other,  my  master  has  deigned  to  resign  the  benefice  in  my 
favour.  So  I  pray  that  you  will  continue  as  heretofore  to  honour  our  temple 
with  your  visits. 

First  Par. — That  is  an  auspicious  event ;  and  if  I  have  not  been  already  to 
offer  my  congratulations,  it  is  because  I  was  not  apprised  of  it.  Well !  my 
present  reason  for  calling  is  just  simply  this  : — I  am  off  to-day  to  a  certain 
place ;  but  as  it  has  suddenly  begun  to  threaten  rain,  1  should  feel  much 
obliged  if  you  would  kindly  condescend  to  lend  me  an  umbrella. 

Curate. — Certainly  !  Nothing  easier !  I  will  have  the  honour  to  lend  it  to 
you.     Please  wait  here  an  instant. 

First  Par. — Oh  !  very  many  thanks. 

Curate. — Here,  then  !     I  will  have  the  honour  to  lend  you  this  one. 

First  Par. — Oh  !  I  owe  you  very  many  thanks. 

Curate. — Please  always  tell  me  if  there  is  anything  of  any  kind  that  I  can  do 
for  you. 

First  Par. — Certainly  !  I  will  call  in  your  assistance.  But  now  I  will 
be  off. 

Curate. — Are  you  going? 

First  Parr. — Yes.     Good-bye  ! 

Curate. — Good-bye  ! 

First  Par. — I  am  much  indebted  to  you. 


200  Fun. 

Citrate. — Thanks  for  your  visit. 

First  Par. — Ah  !    well !    that  is  all  right.     I  will  hasten  on. 

********* 

Citrate. — As  he  said  I  was  to  let  him  know  if  any  of  the  parishioners  came,  I 
will  go  and  tell  him  what  has  passed.     Pray  !    are  you  in  ? 

Rector.— Oh  !    that  is  you  ! 

Curate. — How  dull  Your  Reverence  must  be  feeling  ! 

Rector. — No,  I  am  not  dull. 

Citrate. — Somebody  has  just  been  here. 

Rector. — Did  he  come  to  worship,  or  was  it  that  he  had  business  with  us  ? 

Curate. — He  came  to  borrow  an  umbrella  ;  so  I  lent  him  one. 

Rector. — Quite  right  of  you  to  lend  it.  But  tell  me,  which  umbrella  did 
you  lend  ? 

Curate. — I  lent  the  one  that  came  home  new  the  other  day. 

Rector. — What  a  thoughtless  fellow  you  are  !  Would  anybody  ever  dream 
of  lending  an  umbrella  like  that  one,  which  had  not  even  been  once  used  yet  ? 
The  case  will  present  itself  again.  When  you  do  not  want  to  lend  it,  you  can 
make  an  excuse. 

Curate. — What  would  you  say  ? 

Rector. — You  should  say  :  "  The  request  with  which  you  honour  me  is  a 
slight  one.  But  a  day  or  two  ago  my  master  went  out  with  it,  and  encountering 
a  gust  of  wind  at  a  place  where  four  roads  meet,  the  ribs  flew  off  on  one  side, 
and  the  skin*  on  another.  So  we  have  tied  both  skin  and  ribs  by  the  middle, 
and  hung  them  up  to  the  ceiling.  This  being  so,  it  would  hardly  be  fit  to 
answer  your  purpose."  Something  like  that,  something  with  an  air  of  truth 
about  it,  is  what  you  should  say. 

Curate. — Your  injunctions  shall  be  kept  in  mind,  and  I  will  make  that 
answer  another  time. — Now  I  will  be  going. 

Rector. — Are  you  off? 

Curate. — Yes. 

Rector,  i 

>  Good-bve  !    good-bye  ! 
Curate.)  '         b  3 

♦  *******  * 

Citrate. — What  can  this  mean  ?  Let  my  master  say  what  he  likes,  it  does 
seem  strange  to  refuse  to  lend  a  thing  when  you  have  it  by  you. 

********* 
Second  Par. — I  am  a  resident  in  this  neighbourhood.     As  I  am  going  on  a 

*  The  "cover"  of  an  umbrella  is  called  by  the  Japanese  its  skin.  Similarly  they 
speak  of  the  skin  of  a  tree,  the  skin  of  an  apple,  the  skin  of  bread  (its  crust),  etc.  In 
fact,  the  outside  of  most  things  is  termed  their  "skin." 


Fun. 


20I 


long  journey  to-day,  I  mean  to  look  in  at  the  parish  temple  and  borrow  a 
horse. — 1  will  go  quickly.     Ah  !    here  I  am  !    Hoy  !    admittance  ! 

Curate. — There  is  some  one  hallooing  at  the  gate  again  !  Who  is  that  ask- 
ing for  admittance  ?     Who  is  that  hallooing  ? 

Second  Par. — It  is  I. 

Cv.rate. — Oh  !    you  are  indeed  most  welcome  ! 

Second  Par. — My  present  reason  for  calling  is  just  simply  this  : — I  am  off  to- 
day on  a  long  journey,  and  (though  it  is  a  bold  request  to  make)  I  should  feel 
much  obliged  if  you  would  condescend  to  lend  me  a  horse. 

Curate. — Nothing  couid  be  slighter  than  the  request  with  which  you  honour 
me.  But  a  day  or  two  ago  my  master  went  out  with  it,  and  encountering  a 
gust  of  wind  at  a  place  where  four  roads  meet,  the  ribs  flew  off  on  one  side, 
and  the  skin  on  another.  So  we  have  tied  both  skin  and  ribs  by  the  middle, 
and  hung  them  up  to  the  ceiling.  This  being  so,  it  would  hardly  be  fit  to 
answer  your  purpose. 

Second  Par. — Why  !    it  is  a  horse  that  I  am  asking  for  ! 

Curat,-. — Yes,  certainly  !    a  horse. 

Second  Par. — Oh  well  !    then  there  is  no  help  for  it.     I  will  be  off. 

Curate. — Are  you  going  ? 

Second  Par. — Yes.     Good-bye  ! 

Curate. — Good-bye  !     Thanks  for  your  visit. 


Second  Par. — Well  !     I  never  !     He  says  things  that  I  cannot  in  the  least 
make  out. 


Curate. — I  spoke  as  my  master  had  instructed  me  ;  so  doubtless  he  will  be 
pleased.     Pray  !     Are  you  in  ? 

Rector. — Oh  !    that  is  you  !     Is  it  on  business  that  you  come  ? 

Curate. — Somebody  has  just  been  here  to  borrow  our  horse. 

Rector. — And  you  lent  him,  as  he  fortunately  happened  to  be  disengaged? 

Curate. — Oh  no  !  1  did  not  lend  it,  but  replied  in  the  manner  you  had 
instructed  me. 

Rector. — What !  I  do  not  remember  saying  anything  about  the  horse. 
What  was  it  you  answered  ? 

Curate. — I  said  that  you  had  been  out  with  it  a  day  or  two  ago,  and  that, 
encountering  a  gust  of  wind  at  a  place  where  four  roads  meet,  the  ribs  had 
flown  off  on  one  side,  and  the  skin  on  the  other,  which  being  the  case,  it  would 
hardly  fit  to  answer  his  purpose. 

Rector. — What  do  you  mean?  It  was  if  they  came  to  ask  for  an  umbrella 
that  I  told  you  to  reply  like  that !     But  would  anybody  ever  dream  of  saying 


202  Fun. 

such  a  thing  to  a  person  who  should  come  to  borrow  a  horse  ?     Another  time, 
when  you  do  not  want  to  lend  it,  you  can  make  a  fitting  excuse. 

Curate.— What  would  you  say  ? 

Rector. — You  should  say :  "  We  lately  turned  him  out  to  grass ;  and 
becoming  frolicsome,  he  dislocated  his  thigh,  and  is  lying  down  covered  with 
straw  in  a  corner  of  the  stable.  This  being  so,  he  will  hardly  be  fit  to  answer 
your  purpose."  Something  like  that,  something  with  an  air  of  truth  about 
it,  is  what  you  should  say. 

Curate. — Your  injunctions  shall  be  kept  in  mind,  and  I  will  profit  by  them 
next  time. 

Rector. — Be  sure  you  do  not  say  something  stupid  ! 

********* 

Curate. — What  can  this  mean  ?  To  say  a  thing  because  he  tells  me  to  say 
it,  and  then,  forsooth,  to  get  a  scolding  for  it !  For  all  I  am  now  my  own 
master,  I  see  no  way  out  of  these  perplexities. 

********* 

Third  Parishioner. — I  am  a  resident  in  this  neighbourhood,  and  am  on  my 
way  to  the  parish  temple,  where  I  have  some  business.  Well,  I  will  make 
haste.     Ah  !  here  I  am  !     Hoy  !  admittance  ! 

Curate. — There  is  some  one  hallooing  at  the  gate  again  !  Who  is  that 
hallooing? 

Third  Par.— It  is  T. 

Curate. — Oh  !  a  hearty  welcome  to  you  ! 

Third  Par. — It  is  long  since  I  last  had  the  honour  of  coming  to  enquire 
after  you  ;  but  I  trust  that  the  worthy  rector  and  yourself  are  still  in  the 
enjoyment  of  good  health. 

Curate. — Oh  yes  !  we  both  continue  well.  But  by  the  way,  my  master, 
moved  by  some  impulse  or  other,  has  deigned  to  resign  the  benefice  in  my 
favour.  So  I  pray  that  you  will  continue  to  honour  our  temple  with  your 
visits. 

Third  Par. — That  is  an  auspicious  event ;  and  if  I  have  not  been  already  to 
offer  my  congratulations,  it  is  because  I  was  not  apprised  of  it.  To-morrow 
being  a  religious  anniversary  in  my  family,  I  should  feel  greatly  obliged  if  our 
worthy  rector  and  yourself  would  condescend  to  come  to  my  house. 

Curate. — For  myself,  I  will  come  ;  but  my  master  will  scarcely  be  able  to 
do  so. 

Third  Par. — What !  has  he  any  other  business  on  hand? 

Curate. — No,  he  has  no  particular  business  on  hand  ;  but  we  lately  turned 
him  out  to  grass,  and  becoming  fiolicsome,  he  dislocated  his  thigh,  and  is  lying 
down  covered  with  straw  in  a  corner  of  the  stable.  This  being  so,  he  will 
scarcely  be  able  to  come. 


Fun. 


203 


Third  Par. — Why  !  it  is  the  rector  that  I  am  talking  about ! 
Curate. — Yes,  certainly  !  the  lector. 

Third  Par. — Well !  I  am  very  sorry  such  a  thing  should  have  occurred.    At 
any  rate,  do  you,  please,  be  so  kind  as  to  come. 
Curate. — Most  certainly,  I  will  come. 
Third  Par. — Now  I  will  be  off. 
Curate. — Are  you  going  ? 
Third  Par. — Yes.     Good-bye  ! 
Curate. — Good-bye  !     Thanks  for  your  visit. 

********* 

Third  Par. — Well,  I  never  !  He  says  things  that  I  cannot  in  the  least  make 
out. 

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  * 

Curate. — This  time,  at  all  events,  he  will  be  pleased.     Pray  !  are  you  in  ? 

Rector. — Oh  !  that  is  you  !     Is  it  on  business  that  you  come  ? 

Curate. — Somebody  has  just  been  here  to  ask  both  Your  Reverence  and 
myself  to  go  to  him  to-morow,  when  there  is  a  religious  anniversary  in  his 
family.  So  I  said  that  1  would  go,  but  that  you  would  scarcely  be  able  to 
do  so. 

Rector. — What  a  pity  !  T  should  have  liked  to  go,  as  I  just  happen  to  be 
at  leisure  to-morrow. 

Curate. — Oh  !  but  I  said  what  you  had  instructed  me  to  say. 

Rector. — I  do  not  remember.     What  was  it,  then,  that  you  answered? 

Curate. — I  said  that  we  had  lately  turned  you  out  to  grass,  and  that, 
becoming  frolicsome,  you  had  dislocated  your  thigh,  and  were  lying  down 
covered  with  straw  in  a  corner  of  the  stable,  so  that  you  would  scarcely  be 
able  to  go 

Rector. — You  really  and  truly  went  and  said  that? 

Curate. — Yes  !  really  and  truly. 

Rector. — Well,  I  never  !  You  are  an  idiot !  Speak  as  I  may,  over  and 
over  again,  nothing  seems  to  be  able  to  make  you  understand.  It  was  if  they 
came  to  borrow  a  horse,  that  I  told  you  to  make  that  answer  !  The  end 
of  all  this  is,  that  it  will  never  do  for  you  to  become  rector.  Get  along 
with  you  ! 

Curate.— Oh  ! 

Rector. — Won't  you  get  along?  Won't  you  get  along?  Won't  you  get 
along  ? 

Curate. — Oh  dear  !  oh  dear  !  oh  dear  !  oh  dear  !  oh  dear  !  But,  Reverend 
Sir,  for  all  you  are  my  master,  it  is  an  unheard-of  shame  for  you  to  beat  me 
thus.  And  for  all  you  are  the  man  you  are,  you  cannot  be  said  to  have  been 
without  your  frolics  either, — that  you  cannot ! 


204  Funerals. 

Rector. — When  was  I  ever  frolicsome  ?  If  I  ever  was,  out  with  it  quick ! 
out  with  it  qucik  ! 

Curate. — If  I  were  to  tell  it,  you  would  be  put  to  shame. 

Rector. — I  am  conscious  of  nothing  that  could  put  me  to  shame.  If  any- 
thing there  be,  out  with  it  quick  !  out  with  it  quick  ! 

Carafe.— Well  then,  I'll  tell  it,  I  will. 

Rector. — Out  with  it  quick  ! 

Curate  — Well,  then  !  the  other  day,  pretty  little  Ichi,  who  lives  outside  the 
temple  gate,  was  here. 

Rector. — And  what  about  Ichi,  pray  ! 

Curate. — Just  listen,  please  !  Don't  you  call  it  a  frolic  to  have  beckoned  to 
her,  and  then  to  have  disappeared  with  her  into  one  of  the  back  rooms? 

Rector. — Insolent  rascal,  inventing  things  I  never  did,  and  bringing  shame 
on  your  superior  !  After  this,  by  the  God  of  War  with  his  Bow  and  Arrows, 
I  shall  not  let  you  escape  me  ! 

Curate. — For  all  you  are  my  master,  I  do  not  intend  to  let  myself  get  the 
worst  of  it. 

Both.— Ah!  ah!  ah!  {Fighting.) 

Curate. — Has  the  old  fool  learnt  a  lesson?  Oh  !  oh  !  I  am  glad  !  I  am 
glad  !     I've  beat !     I've  beat ! 

Rector. — Deary,  deary  me  !  where  is  he  off  to,  after  having  put  his  master 
in  such  a  plight?  Is  there  nobody  there?  Catch  him!  I  won't  let  him 
escape  !     I  won't  let  him  escape  ! 


Funerals.  Till  recently  all  funerals  were .  in  the  hands  of 
the  Buddhist  hierarchy, — even  the  funerals  of  Shinto  priests 
themselves :  but  now  the  Shintoists  are  allowed  to  bury  their 
own  dead.  The  Shinto  coffin  resembles  that  used  in  Europe. 
The  Buddhist  coffin  is  small  and  square,  and  the  corpse  is  fitted 
into  it  in  a  squatting  posture  with  the  head  tjent  to  the  knees, 
— a  custom  which  some  derive  from  the  devout  habit  of  sitting 
rapt  in  religious  meditation,  while  others  discover  in  it  a  sym- 
bolical representation,  in  the  last  earthly  scene,  of  the  position 
of  the  unborn  child  in  its  mother's  womb.  Further  outward  and 
visible  signs  whereby  to  distinguish  a  Buddhist  from  a  Shinto 
funeral,  are,  in  the  former,  the  bare  shaven  heads  of  the  Buddhist 
priests  and  the  dark  blue  coats  of  the  coffin-bearers ;  in  the  latter, 
the  plain  white  garb  of  the  coffin-bearers,  the  Shinto  priests'  non- 


Gardens. 


205 


shaven  heads  and  curved  gauze  caps,  and  the  flags  and  branches 
of  trees  borne  in  the  procession.  The  use  of  large  bouquets  of 
flowers  is  common  to  both,  and  both  religions  have  funeral 
services  of  great  length  and  intricacy. 

Vrast  sums  of  money  are  often  lavished  on  funerals,  more 
especially  by  the  Imperial  Family.  When  the  Empress  Dowager 
died,  in  1897,  no  less  than  700,000/(7/  were  appropriated  from 
the  national  treasury.  Never,  perhaps,  was  funeral  pomp  more 
elaborate  than  on  this  occasion,  which,  from  first  to  last,  occupied 
several  weeks, — for  the  actual  interment  was  only  the  last  scene 
in  an  extraordinarily  complicated  set  of  observances.  The 
procession  was  two  miles  in  -length,  the  final  ceremony  lasted 
over  twenty-two  hours,  during  all  which  time  Imperial  princes 
stood  or  walked  almost  barefoot  in  the  snow  without  eating  a 
morsel  of  food.  An  ox- wagon,  with  wheels  purposely  built  so  as 
to  creak  mournfully,  bore  the  magnificent  coffin  in  which  the  body 
lay  preserved  in  vermilion.  Three  oxen  drew  it  harnessed  in 
single  file, — the  leader  jet-black,  the  next  dun  colour  with  black 
flecks,  the  third  spotted  white  and  black,  with  a  white  star  on 
the  forehead  and  four  white  stockings, — all  this  in  accordance 
with  ancient  use.  The  actual  grave-diggers  were  habited  as 
birds  with  black  wings,  because  for  these,  being  devoid  of  reason, 
there  could  be  no  sacrilege  in  perching  upon  an  Empress's  tomb. 
All  sound  of  music  was  hushed  throughout  the  land  for  the 
space  of  a  month,  the  schools  were  closed  for  a  week,  and 
thousands  of  criminals  liberated.  The  Court  itself  suspended  all 
festivities  for  a  year.      (See  also  Article  on  ArchjeolocxY.) 

Books  recommended.  Japanese  Funeral  Rites,  by  A.  H.  Lay,  in  Vol.  XIX. 
Part  III.  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions." — A  Shinto  Funeral,  by  Baroness  Sannomiya, 
in  the  "Nineteenth  Century"  for  December,   1896. 

Gardens.  A  garden  without  flowers  may  sound  like  a 
contradiction  in  terms.  But  it  is  a  fact  that  many  Japanese 
gardens  are  of  that  kind,  the  object  which  the  Japanese  landscape- 
gardener  sets  before  him  being  to  produce  something  park-like, — 
to  suggest   some  famous  natural  scene,  in  which  flowers  may  or 


2o6  Gardens. 

may  not  appear,  according  to  the  circumstances  of  the  case. 
When  they  do,  they  are  generally  grouped  together  in  beds  or 
under  shelter,  and  removed  as  soon  as  their  season  of  bloom  is 
over,  more  after  the  manner  of  a  European  flower-show.  In  this 
way  are  obtained  horticultural  triumphs,  such  as  are  described  in 
the  Article  on  Flowers.  Triumphs  of  another  kind  are  achieved 
by  dwarfing.  Thus  you  may  see  a  pine-tree  or  a  maple,  sixty 
years  old  and  perfect  in  ever}'  part,  but  not  more  than  a  foot 
high.  Japanese  gardeners  are  also  very  skilful  in  transplanting 
large  trees.  A  judicious  treatment  of  the  accessory  roots  during 
a  couple  of  years  enables  massive,  aged  trees  to  be  removed  from 
place  to  place,  so  that  a  Japanese  nouveau  richc  can  raise  up 
anything — even  an  ancestral  park — on  whatever  spot  he  fancies. 

Japanese  landscape-gardening  is  one  of  the  fine  arts.  Ever 
since  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century,  generations  of  artists 
have  been  busy  perfecting  it,  elaborating  and  refining  over  and 
over  again  the  principles  handed  down  by  their  predecessors,  until 
it  has  come  to  be  considered  a  mystery  as  well  as  an  art,  and 
is  furnished — not  to  say  encumbered — with  a  vocabulary  more 
complicated  and  recondite  than  any  one  who  has  not  perused 
some  of  the  native  treatises  on  the  subject  can  well  imagine. 
There  is  a  whole  set  of  names  for  different  sorts  of  garden  lanterns, 
another  for  water-basins,  another  for  fences  (one  authority 
enumerates  nineteen  kinds  of  screen  fences  alone),  another — and 
this  is  a  very  important  subject — for  those  large  stones,  which, 
according  to  Japanese  ideas,  constitute  the  skeleton  of  the  whole 
composition. 

Then,  too,  there  are  rules  for  every  detail ;  and  different  schools 
of  the  art  or  science  of  gardening  have  rules  diametrically 
opposed  to  each  other.  For  instance,  larger  trees  are  planted 
and  larger  hills  made  by  one  school  in  the  front  portion  of  a 
garden,  and  smaller  ones  in  the  further  portions,  with  the  object 
of  exaggerating  the  perspective  and  thus  making  the  garden  look 
bigger  than  it  really  is.  Another  school  teaches  the  direct 
contrary.     Suggestion    is    largely    used,   as  when  part  of  a  small 


Gardens.  207 

lake  is  so  adroitly  hidden  as  to  give  the  idea  of  greater  size  in 
the  part  unseen,  or  as  when  a  meander  of  pebbles  is  made  to 
represent  a  river-bed.  Everything,  in  fact,  has  a  reason, — generally 
an  abstruse  reason.  Gardens  are  supposed  to  be  capable  of 
symbolising  abstract  ideas,  such  as  peace,  chastity,  old  age,  etc. 
The  following  passage,  from  the  authority  quoted  below,  will 
show  how  the  garden  of  a  certain  Buddhist  abbot  is  made  to 
convey  the  idea  of  the  power  of  divine  truth  : — "This  garden 
consists  almost  entirely  of  stones  arranged  in  a  fanciful  and 
irregular  manner  in  a  small  enclosure,  the  sentiment  expressed 
depending  for  its  value  upon  acquaintance  with  the  following 
Buddhist  legend,  somewhat  reminding  us  of  the  story  of  Saint 
Francis  and  the  birds.  A  certain  monk  Daita,  ascending  a 
hillock  and  collecting  stones,  began  to  preach  to  them  the  secret 
precepts  of  Buddha,  and  so  miraculous  was  the  effect  of  the 
wondrous  truths  which  he  told  that  even  the  lifeless  stones  bowed 
in  reverent  assent.  Thereupon  the  Saint  placed  them  upon  the 
ground  around  him,  and  consecrated  them  as  the  '  Nodding 
Stones.'  " 

What  the  Japanese  call  hako-niwa  is  a  whole  landscape-garden 
compressed  into  the  microscopic  limits  of  a  single  dish  or 
flower-pot, — paths,  bridges,  mountains,  stone  lanterns,  etc.,  all 
complete, — a  fanciful  little  toy. 

The  roof  ridge  of  a  peasant's  dwelling  sometimes  presents  the 
aspect  of  a  flower-garden ;  for  when  it  is  flat,  it  is  apt  to  be 
overgrown  with  irises  or  red  lilies.  People  disagree  about  the 
reason.  Some  say  that  the  flowers  are  planted  in  order  to  avert 
pestilence,  while  others  no  less  positively  affirm  the  growth  to  be 
accidental.  Others  again  assert  that  the  object  is  to  strengthen 
the  thatch.  •  We  incline  to  this  latter  view.  Bulbs  do  not  fly 
through  the  air,  neither  is  it  likely  that  bulbs  should  be  contained 
in  the  sods  put  on  the  top  of  all  the  houses  in  a  village.  We 
have  noticed,  furthermore,  that  in  the  absence  of  such  sods, 
brackets  of  strong  shingling  are  employed,  so  that  it  is  safe  to 
assume  that  the  two  are  intended  to  serve  the  same  purpose. 


2o8  Geography. 

Book   recommended.     Landscape    Gardening  in    Japan,   by  Josiah    Conder,    with 
Supplement,  both  beautifully  illustrated.      Brinklcy's   Japan  and  China,  Vol.   II.   p.  229 

et  scq. 

Geisha.     See  Singing-girls. 

Geography.  The  boundaries  of  Japan  have  expanded  greatly 
in  the  course  of  ages.  The  central  and  western  portions  of  the 
Main  Island,  together  with  Shikoku,  Kyushu,  and  the  lesser 
islands  of  Iki,  Tsushima,  Old,  Awaji,  and  perhaps  Sado,  formed 
the  Japan  of  early  historic  days,  say  of  the  eighth  century  after 
Christ.  At  that  time  the  Ainos,  though  already  in  full  retreat 
northwards,  still  held  the  Main  Island  as  far  as  the  38th  or  39th 
parallel  of  latitude.  They  were  soon  driven  across  the  Straits 
of  Tsugaru  into  Yezo,  which  island  was  itself  gradually  conquered 
during  the  period  extending  from  the  twelfth  to  the  seventeenth 
century.  In  the  eighteenth  century  a  portion  of  Saghalien  was 
added  to  Japanese  territory.  But  a  discussion  having  arisen  on 
this  subject  between  Japan  and  Russia,  the  weaker  of  the  two 
powers  (for  Japan  was  young  and  weak  then)  naturally  went  to  the 
wall.  Saghalien,  with  its  valuable  coal-fields  and  fisheries,  was 
ceded  to  Russia  by  the  treaty  of  St.  Petersburg  in  1875,  and  the 
barren,  storm-swept  Kurile  islands  were  obtained  in  exchange. 
Meanwhile,  the  Luchu  and  Bonin  Islands  had  been  added  to  the 
Japanese  possessions,  and  in  1895  the  valuable  island  of  Formosa 
was  ceded  by  the  vanquished  Chinese.  The  empire  thus,  in  its 
present  and  furthest  extent,  stretches  from  Kamchatka  on  the  north 
in  about  lat.  510,  to  the  extremity  of  Formosa  on  the  south  in  lat. 
220,  and  from  1200  to  15 6°  of  long,  east  of  Greenwich. 

Japan  proper  consists  of  three  large  islands,  of  which  one,  the 
largest  or  Main  Island,  distinguished  as  Hondo  on  some  modern 
maps,  has  no  name  in  popular  use,  while  the  other  two  are 
called  respectively  Shikoku  and  Kyushu,  together  with  the  small 
islands  of  Sado,  Oki,  Tsushima,  and  a  multitude  of  lesser  ones 
still.  The  largest  island  is  separated  from  the  two  next  in  size  by 
the  celebrated  Inland  Sea,  for  which  latter  also  there  is  no 
generally  current  Japanese  name.     The  area  of  the  entire  Japanese 


Geography.  209 

empire,  excluding  Formosa  and  the  Pescadores,  is  between 
146,000  and  147,000  square  miles.  Only  twelve  per  cent,  of 
this  total  area  is  cultivated,  or  even  cultivable.  By  far  the  greater 
portion  of  it  is  covered  with  mountains,  many  of  which  are 
volcanoes  either  active  or  extinct.  Fuji  itself  was  in  eruption  as 
late  as  January,  A.D.  1708.  Of  recently  or  constantly  active 
volcanoes  we  may  mention  Asama,  the  two  Shirane-sans,  Nasu- 
yama,  and  Bandai-san  in  Eastern  Japan,  Vries  Island  (Oshima) 
not  far  from  the  entrance  to  Yokohama  harbour,  Aso-san  and 
Kirishima-yama  in  Kyushu,  and  the  beautifully  shaped  Koma- 
ga-take  near  Hakodate.  Others,  extinct  or  quiescent,  are  Ontake, 
Hakusan,  Tateyama,  Nantai-zan,  Chokai-zan,  Iide-san,  Ganju-san, 
and  Iwaki-yama,  all  on  the  Main  Island.  Some  are  difficult  to 
class,  for  instance,  Sakura-jima  in  Kyushu,  whose  smoke  has 
long  been  reduced  almost  to  nothing,  and  Onsen-ga-take  in  the 
same  island,  where  all  that  remains  active  is  a  solfatara  at  its 
base.  The  grandest  mountain  mass  in  Japan  is  the  Shinano-Hida 
range,— granite  giants  of  from  8,000  to  10,000  ft.  in  height. 

Owing  to  the  narrowness  of  the  country,  most  Japanese  streams 
are  rather  torrents  than  rivers.  The  rivers  best  worth  mentioning 
are  the  Kitakami,  the  Abukuma,  the  Tone,  the  Tenryu,  and  the 
Kiso,  flowing  into  the  Pacific  Ocean,  the  Shinano-gawa  flowing 
into  the  Sea  of  Japan,  and  the  Ishikari  in  Yezo.  Most  of  the 
smaller  streams  have  no  general  name,  but  change  their  name 
every  few  miles  on  passing  from  village  to  village. 

Lake  Biwa  near  Kyoto  is  the  largest  lake,  the  next  being- 
Lake  Iwashiro,  on  whose  northern  shore  rises  the  ill-omened 
volcano,  Bandai-san.  The  so-called  lakes  to  the  north-east  of 
Tokyo  are  but  shallow  lagoons  formed  by  the  retreating  sea. 
The  most  important  straits  are  the  Strait  of  La  Perouse  between 
Yezo  and  Saghalien,  the  Strait  of  Tsugaru  between  Yezo  and  the 
Main  Island,  the  Kii  Channel  (Linschoten  Strait)  between  the 
Main  Island  and  eastern  Shikoku,  the  Bungo  Channel  between 
western  Shikoku  and  Kyushu,  and  the  Strait  of  Shimonoseki 
between    the    south-western    extremitv    of  the    Main    Island    and 


210  Geography. 

Kyushu.  The  most  noteworthy  gulfs  or  bays  are  Volcano  Bay 
in  southern  Yezo,  Aomori  Bay  at  the  northern  extremity  of 
the  Main  Island,  Sendai  Bay  in  the  north-east,  the  Gulfs  of 
Tokyo,  Sagami,  Suruga,  Owari,  and  Kagoshima  facing  south, 
and  the  Bay  of  Toyama  between  the  peninsula  of  Noto  and  the 
mainland. 

Of  peninsulas  the  chief  are  Noto,  jutting  out  into  the  Sea  of 
Japan,  and  Kazusa-B5shu  and  Izu,  not  far  from  Tokyo  on  the 
Pacific  Ocean  side.  It  is  an  interesting  fact  that  both  Noto  and 
Izu,  words  meaningless  in  Japanese — mere  place-names — can  be 
traced  back  to  terms  still  used  by  the  Amos  to  designate  the 
idea  of  a  "promontory"  or  "peninsula."  Finally,  even  so  rapid 
a  sketch  as  this  cannot  pass  over  the  waterfalls  of  Nikko,  of 
Kami-ide  near  Fuji,  of  Nachi  in  Kishu,  of  Todoroki  in  Shikoku, 
and  of  Yoro.  Still  less  must  we  forget  that  mighty  river  in  the 
sea — the  Kuroshio,  or  "  Black  Brine  " — which,  flowing  northwards 
from  the  direction  of  Formosa  and  the  Philippine  Islands,  warms 
the  southern  and  south-eastern  coasts  of  Japan  much  as  the  Gulf- 
stream  warms  the  coasts  of  western  Europe.  Very  noteworthy, 
likewise,  is  the  Naruto  Channel  which  separates  the  island  of 
Shikoku  and  Awaji,  where  the  tide  rushes  with  resistless  force  out 
of  the  Inland  Sea  into  the  Pacific  Ocean. 

There  are  two  current  divisions  of  the  soil  of  the  empire — an 
older  and  more  popular  one  into  provinces  (kiwi),  of  which  there 
are  eighty-four  in  all,  and  a  recent,  purely  administrative  one 
into  prefectures  (ken),  of  which  there  are  forty-three,  exclusive  of 
the  three  metropolitan  districts  (/it) — Tokyo,  Kyoto,  and  Osaka — 
and  of  the  islands  of  Yezo  and  Formosa.  Owing  to  the  extensive 
use  made  of  the  Chinese  language  in  Japan,  most  of  the  provinces 
have  two  names, — one  native  Japanese,  the  other  Chinese.  Thus, 
the  provinces  to  the  north  and  west  of  Tokyo  marked  Kotsuke, 
Shinano,  and  Kai  on  our  map,  are  also  called  Joshu,  Shinshii,  and 
Koshu  respectively,  the  syllable  shu  (jj]j)  signifying  "province" 
in  Chinese.  The  south-western  province  marked  Nagato  in  the 
map  bears  the  alternative  name  of  Ch5shti,    and    forms    part  of 


Geology.  2 1 1 

the  prefecture  of  Yamaguchi,  which  also  includes  the  province  of 
Suwo.  To  acid  to  the  perplexities  of  the  foreign  student,  groups 
of  provinces  receive  special  names  in  popular  and  histori- 
cal parlance.  Such  are,  for  instance,  the  Go-Kinai,  or  "  Five 
Home  Provinces,"  consisting  of  the  Kyoto-Nara-Osaka  district, 
the  Kvcanto  which  includes  all  the  provinces  of  the  East,  the 
San-ybdo  or  "Sunny  District,"  bordering  the  Inland  Sea,  and 
the  San-indo,  or  "  Shad)'  District,"  on  the  Sea  of  Japan.  (See 
also  Articles  on  Capital,  Cities,  Population,  Formosa,  Luchu, 
and  Yezo.) 

Books  recommended.  Japan,  by  W.  B.  Mason,  in  "The  International  Geo- 
graphy."— Rein's  Japan. —  The  China  Sea  Directory,  Vol.  IV. — Abbe  Papinot's  Diction- 
naire  de  VHistoire  et  de  la  Geographic  du  Ja/on. 

Geology.  It  is  popularly  supposed  that  japan  entirely 
consists,  or  almost  entirely  consists,  of  volcanic  rocks.  Such  a 
supposition  is  true  for  the  Kurile  Islands,  partially  true  for  the 
northern  half  of  the  Main  Island  and  for  Kyushu.  But  for  the 
remainder  of  the  country,  that  is,  the  southern  halt  of  the  Main 
Island  and  Shikoku,  the  assumption  is  quite  without  support. 
The  backbone  of  the  country  consists  of  primitive  gneiss  and 
schists.  Amongst  the  latter,  in  Shikoku,  there  is  an  extremely 
interesting  rock  consisting  largely  of  piedmontite.  Overlying  these 
amongst  the  Palaeozoic  rocks,  we  meet  in  many  parts  of  Japan 
with  slates  and  other  rocks  possibly  of  Cambrian  or  Silurian  age. 
Trilobites  have  been  discovered  in  Rikuzen.  Carboniferous  rocks 
are  represented  by  mountain  masses  of  Fusulina  and  other  lime- 
stones. There  is  also  amongst  the  Palaeozoic  group  an  interesting 
series  of  red  slates  containing  Radiolaria. 

Mesozoic  rocks  are  represented  by  slates  containing  Ammonites 
and  Monolis,  evidently  of  Triassic  age,  rocks  containing  Ammonites 
Bucklandi  of  Liassic  age,  a  series  of  beds  rich  in  plants  of 
Jurassic  age,  and  beds  of  Cretaceous  age  containing  Trigonia 
and  many  other  fossils.  The  Cainozoic  or  Tertiary  system  forms 
a  fringe  round  the  coasts  of  many  portions  of  the  empire.  It 
chiefly   consists  of  stratified   volcanic    tuffs    rich    in   coal,   lignite, 


2 1 2  Globe-trotters . 

fossilised  plants,  and  an  invertebrate  fauna.  Diatomaceous  earth 
exists  at  several  places  in  Yezo.  In  the  alluvium  which  covers 
all,  the  remains  have  been  discovered  of  several  species  of 
elephant,  which,  according  to  Dr.  Edmund  Naumann,  are  of 
Indian  origin.  The  most  common  eruptive  rock  is  andesite. 
Such  rocks  as  basalt,  diorite,  and  trachyte  are  comparatively  rare. 
Quartz  porphyry,  quartzless  porphyry,  and  granite  are  largely 
developed. 

The  mineral  most  extensively  worked  in  Japan  is  coal,  large 
deposits  of  which  exist  in  north-western  Kyushu  and  near 
Nagasaki  in  the  south,  and  at  Poronai  and  other  places  in  Yezo 
at  the  northern  extremity  of  the  empire.  Not  only  is  the  output 
sufficient  to  supply  the  wants  of  the  country  ;  foreign  steamers 
largely  use  Japan  coal,  and  considerable  shipments  are  made  all 
over  the  Far-East.  The  copper  mines  of  Ashio  near  Nikko,  and 
of  Besshi  in  Shikoku  produce  enormous  quantities  of  copper, 
and  the  antimony  production  is  among  the  most  notable  in  the 
world.  From  the  mine  of  Ichinokawa  in  Shikoku  come  the 
wonderful  crystals  of  antimonite,  which  form  such  conspicuous 
objects  in  the  mineralogical  cabinets  of  Europe.  There  is  a  fair 
production  of  silver  at  Innai  in  the  north  and  at  Ikuno  in  Central 
Japan ;  but  that  of  other  metals  is  relatively  small.  The  reports 
circulated  from  time  to  time  of  large  discoveries  of  gold  in  Yezo 
have  hitherto  not  been  verified. 

Books  recommended.  Die  Kaiserliche  Geologische  Reichsanstalt  von  Japan,  by 
T.  Wada. —  Uebcr  den  Ban  tin d  die  Entstehungder  Japanischen  Inseln,  by  E.  Naumann. 
—  Catalogue  of  Japanese  Minerals  contained  in  the  Imperial  College  of  Engineering, 
Tokyo,  by  J.  Milne. — Les  Produits  de  la  Nature  Japonaise  ct  Chinoise,  by  A.  J.  C. 
Geerts. — Bulletin  of  the   Geological  Survey  of  Japan. 

Globe-trotters  have  been  described,  once  for  all,  by  Mr. 
Netto  in  a  passage  of  his  Papier  schmeilerlinge  aus  Japan,  of 
Avhich  the  following  is  a  faithful  translation  : — 

"  Globe-trotier  is  the  technical  designation  of  a  genus  which, 
like  the  phylloxera  and  the  Colorado  beetle,  had  scarcely  received 
any  notice  till  recent  times,  but  whose  importance  justifies  us  in 


G-lobe-trotters.  2 1 3 

devoting  a  few  lines  to  it.  It  may  be  subdivided,  for  the  most 
part,  into  the  following  species  : — 

"  1.  Globe-trotter  communis.  Sun-helmet,  blue  glasses,  scant 
luggage,  celluloid  collars.  His  object  is  a  maximum  of  travelling 
combined  with  a  minimum  of  expense.  He  presents  himself  to 
you  with  some  suspicious  introduction  or  other,  accepts  with  ill- 
dissembled  glee  your  lukewarm  invitation  to  him  to  stay,  generally 
appears  too  late  at  meals,  makes  daily  enquiries  concerning 
jinrikisha  fares,  frequently  invokes  your  help  as  interpreter  to 
smooth  over  money  difficulties  between  himself  and  the  jinrikisha- 
men,  offers  honest  curio-dealers  who  have  the  entree  to  your 
house  one-tenth  of  the  price  they  ask,  and  loves  to  occupy  your 
time,  not  indeed  by  gaining  information  from  you  about  Japan 
(all  that  sort  of  thing  he  knows  already  much  more  thoroughly 
than  you  do),  but  by  giving  you  information  about  India,  China, 
and  America, — places  with  which  you  are  possibly  as  familiar  as 
he.  When  the  time  of  his  departure  approaches,  you  must 
provide  him  with  introductions  even  for  places  which  he  has  no 
present  intention  of  visiting,  but  which  he  might  visit.  You  will 
be  kind  enough,  too,  to  have  his  purchases  here  packed  up, — 
but,  mind,  very  carefully.  You  will  also  see  after  freight  and 
insurance,  and  despatch  the  boxes  to  the  address  in  Europe 
which  he  leaves  with  you.  Furthermore,  you  will  no  doubt  not 
mind  purchasing  and  seeing  to  the  packing  of  a  few  sundries 
which  he  himself  has  not  had  time  to  look  after. 

"  2.  Globe-trotter  scientificus.  Spectacles,  microscope,  a  few 
dozen  note-books,  alcohol,  arsenical  acid,  seines,  butterfly-nets, 
other  nets.  He  travels  for  special  scientific  purposes,  mostly 
natural-historical  (if  zoological,  then  woe  betide  you!).  You 
have  to  escort  him  on  all  sorts  of  visits  to  Japanese  officials,  in 
order  to  procure  admittance  for  him  to  collections,  museums, 
and  libraries.  You  have  to  invite  him  to  meet  Japanese  savants 
of  various  degrees,  and  to  serve  as  interpreter  on  each  such 
occasion.  You  have  to  institute  researches  concerning  ancient 
Chinese  books,  to  discover  and  engage  the  services  of  translators, 


2 1 4  Globe-trotters. 

draughtsmen,  flayers  and  staffers  of  specimens.  Your  spare  room 
gradually  develops  into  a  museum  of  natural  history,  a  fact 
which  you  can  smell  at  the  very  threshold.  In  this  case,  too, 
the  packing,  passing  through  the  custom-house,  and  despatching 
of  the  collections  falls  to  your  lot ;  and  happy  are  you  if  the 
object  arrive  at  home  in  a  good  state  of  preservation,  and  you 
have  not  to  learn  later  on  that  such  and  such  an  oversight  in 
packing  has  caused  'irreparable'  losses.  Certain  it  is  that,  for 
years  after,  you  will  be  reminded  from  time  to  time  of  your 
inquisitive  guest  by  letters  wherein  he  requests  you  to  give  him 
the  details  of  some  scientific  speciality  whose  domain  is  disagree- 
ably distant  from  your  own,  or  to  procure  for  him  some  creature 
or  other  which  is  said  to  have  been  observed  in  Japan  at  some 
former  period. 

"  3.  Globe-iroUer  elegans.  Is  provided  with  good  introductions 
from  his  government,  generally  stops  at  a  legation,  is  interested 
in  shooting,  and  allows  the  various  charms  of  the  country  to 
induce  him  to  prolong  his  stay. 

"4.  Globe-lroiler  i?idepcndens.  Travels  in  a  steam-yacht, 
generally  accompanied  by  his  family.  Chief  goal  of  his  journey  : 
an  audience  of  the  Mikado. 

"  5.  Globe-trotter  princeps.  Princes  or  other  dignitaries  recognis- 
able by  their  numerous  suite,  and  who  undertake  the  round 
journey  (mostly  on  a  man-of-war)  either  for  political  reasons  or 
for  purposes  of  self-instruction.  This  species  is  useful  to  the 
foreign  residents,  in  so  far  as  the  receptions  and  fetes  given  in 
their  honour  create  an  agreeable  diversion 

"We  might  complete  our  collection  by  the  description  of  a 
few  other  species,  e.g.,  the  Globe-trolier  desp)eralus,  who  expends 
his  uttermost  farthing  on  a  ticket  to  Japan  with  the  hope  of 
making  a  fortune  there,  but  who,  finding  no  situation,  has  at  last 
to  be  carted  home  by  some  cheap  opportunity  at  the  expense 
of  his  fellow-countrymen.  Furthermore  might  be  noticed  the 
Globe-trotter  dolosus,  who  travels  under  some  high-sounding  name 
and  with  a  doubtful  banking  account,  merely  in  order  to  put  as 


Go.  215 

great  a  distance  as  possible  betwixt  himself  and  the  home  police. 
Likewise  the  Globe-iroiter  locuslus,  the  species  that  travels  in 
swarms,  perpetually  dragged  around  the  universe  by  Cook  and 
the  likes  of  Cook  ....  Last,  but  not  least,  just  a  word 
for  the  Globe-trotter  amabilis,  a  species  which  is  fortunately  not 
wanting  and  which  is  always  welcome.  I  mean  the  old  friends 
and  the  new,  whose  memory  lives  fresh  in  the  minds  of  our 
small  community,  connected  as  it  is  with  the  recollection  of 
happy  hours  spent  together.  Their  own  hearts  will  tell  them 
that  not  they,  but  others,  are  pointed  at  in  the  foregoing — perhaps 
partly  too  harsh — description." 

Go,  often  with  little  appropriateness  termed  "  checkers "  by 
European  writers,  is  the  most  popular  of  the  indoor  pastimes  of 
the  Japanese, — a  very  different  affair  from  the  simple  game  known 
to  Europeans  as  Goban  or  Gobang,  properly  the  name  of  the  board 
on  which  Go  is  played.  It  is  the  great  resource  of  most  of  the 
visitors  to  the  hot  springs  and  other  health  resorts,  being  often 
played  from  morning  till  night,  save  for  the  intervals  devoted  to 
eating  and  bathing.  Clubs  and  professors  of  the  art  are  found 
in  all  the  larger  cities,  where,  too,  blind  players  may  oc- 
casionally be  met  with.  Go  may  with  justice  be  considered 
more  difficult  than  chess,  its  wider  field  affording  more  numerous 
ramifications.  The  game  was  introduced  into  Japan  from  China 
by  Shimomichi-no-Mabi,  commonly  known  as  Kibi  Daijin,  who 
flourished  during  the  reign  of  the  Emperor  Shomu  (A.D.  724 — 756). 
In  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century,  a  noted  player,  called 
Hon-im-bo,  was  summoned  from  Kyoto  to  entertain  the  Chinese 
ambassador  then  at  the  court  of  the  Shogun,  from  which  time 
forward  special  Go  players  were  always  retained  by  the  Shoguns 
of  the  Tokugawa  dynasty. 

Go  is  played  on  a  square  wooden  board.  Nineteen  straight 
lines  crossing  each  other  at  right  angles  make  three  hundred  and 
sixty-one  me,  or  crosses,  at  the  points  of  intersection.  These 
may  be  occupied  by  a  hundred  and  eighty  white  and  a  hundred 


2 1 6  Government. 

and  eighty-one  black  stones  {ishi,  as  they  are  termed  in  Japanese). 
The  object  of  the  game  is  to  obtain  possession  of  the  largest 
portion  of  the  board.  This  is  done  by  securing  such  positions 
as  can  be  most  easily  defended  from  the  adversary's  onslaughts. 
There  are  nine  spots  on  the  board,  called  seimoku  supposed  to 
represent  the  chief  celestial  bodies,  while  the  white  and  black 
stones  represent  day  and  night,  and  the  number  of  crosses  the 
three  hundred  and  sixty  degrees  of  latitude,  exclusive  of  the 
central  one,  which  is  called  iaikyoku,  that  is,  the  Primordial 
Principle  of  the  Universe.  There  are  likewise  nine  degrees — or 
classes  as  we  should  term  them — of  proficiency  in  the  game, 
beginning  with  number  one  as  the  lowest,  and  ending  with 
number  nine  as  the  highest  point  of  excellence  attainable. 

In  playing,  if  the  combatants  are  equally  matched,  they  take 
the  white  stones  alternately  ;  if  unequal,  the  weaker  always  takes 
the  black,  and  odds  are  also  given  by  allowing  him  to  occupy 
several  or  all  of  the  nine  spots  or  vantage  points  on  the  board, 
— that  is,  to  place  stones  upon  them  at  the  outset.  A  description 
of  how  the  game  proceeds  would  be  of  little  utility  here,  it  being 
so  complicated  as  to  make  the  personal  instruction  of  a  teacher 
indispensable.  Very  few  foreigners  have  succeeded  in  getting 
beyond  a  rudimentary  knowledge  of  this  interesting  game.  We 
know  only  of  one,  a  German  named  Korschelt,  who  has  taken 
out  a  diploma  of  proficiency. 

The  easy  Japanese  game,  called  Gobang,  which  was  introduced 
into  England  some  years  ago,  is  played  on  the  Go  board  and 
with  the  go-ishi,  or  round  black  and  white  stones.  The  object 
of  the  game  is  to  be  the  first  is  getting  five  stones  in  a  row  in 
any  direction. 

Book  recommended.      O.    Korschelt's  essay  on  Das    Go-Spiel,   published  in  Parts 
2i — 24  of  the  "German  Asiatic  Transactions." 

Government.  In  theory  the  Mikado — heaven-descended, 
absolute,  infallible — was  always  the  head  and  fountain  of  all 
power.  It  belonged  to  him  by  a  right  divine,  which  none  ever 
dreamt  of  disputing.      The  single  and   sufficient  rule  ot-hfe-ior 


Government.  2 1 7 

subjects  was  implicit,  unquestioning  obedience,  as  to  the  mandates 
of  a  god.  The  comparatively  democratic  doctrines  of  the 
Chinese  sages,  according  to  whom  "  the  people  are  the  most 
important  element  in  a  nation,  and  the  sovereign  is  the  lightest," 
were  ever  viewed  with  horror  by  the  Japanese,  to  whom  the 
antiquity  and  the  absolute  power  of  their  Imperial  line  are  badges 
of  perfection  on  which  they  never  wean-  of  descanting.  A  study 
of  Japanese  history  shows,  however,  that  the  Mikado  has  rarely 
exercised  much  of  his  power  in  practice.  Almost  always  has  it 
been  wielded  in  his  name,  often  sorely  against  his  will,  by  the 
members  of  some  ambitious  house,  which  has  managed  to  possess 
itself  of  supreme  influence  over  the  affairs  of  state.  Thus,  the 
Fujiwara  family  soon  after  the  civilisation  of  the  country  by 
Buddhism,  then  the  Taira,  the  Minamoto,  the  Hojo,  and  the 
Ashikaga  during  the  Middle  Ages,  and  the  Tokugawa  in  modern 
times,  held  the  reins  of  state  in  succession.  Under  these  ruling 
families  were  numerous  families  of  lesser  though  still  high  degree, 
the  Daimyos  : — in  other  words,  the  polity  was  feudal.  Even  since 
the  revolution  of  1 868,  whose  avowed  object  was  to  restore  the 
Mikado  to  his  pristine  absolutism,  it  is  allowed  on  all  hands 
that  at  least  a  large  share  of  the  reality  of  power  has  lain  with 
the  two  great  clans  of  Satsuma  and  ChoshG,  while  the  aim  of 
the  two  clans  next  in  influence — Tosa  and  Hizen — has  been  to 
put  themselves  in  Satsuma  and  Choshu's  place.  In  1889  there 
was  granted  a  Constitution,  which  established  a  Diet  consist- 
ing of  two  houses,  and  laid  the  foundation  of  a  new  order 
of  tilings,  a  share  in  the  government  being  thenceforth  vested  in 
the  nobility  and  in  those  gentlemen  and  commoners  whose 
property  qualification  entitles  them  to  vote  or  to  be  voted  for. 
Those  possessing  this  privilege  form  a  little  over  two  per  cent,  of 
the  total  population.  The  members  of  the  lower  house— 376 
in  all — receive  each  a  yearly  allowance  of  2,000  yen  {£200).  A 
certain  measure  of  popular  control  over  local  affairs  was  also 
granted   in    1889. 

The  administration  is  at  present  divided  into  ten  departments, 


2 1 8  Government. 

namely,  the  Imperial  Household,  Foreign  Affairs,  the  Interior, 
Finance,  the  Army,  the  Navy,  Justice,  Education,  Agriculture 
and  Commerce,  and  Communications  (that  is,  Railways,  Posts, 
Telegraphs,  etc.),  each  presided  over  by  a  minister  of  state. 
These,  with  the  exception  of  the  minister  of  the  Household 
Department,  constitute  the  Cabinet.  The  Cabinet  is  responsible 
only  to  the  Emperor,  by  whom  also  each  minister  is  appointed 
and  dismissed  at  will ;  for  government  by  party,  according  to  the 
Anglo-Saxon  plan,  has  not  yet  succeeded  in  establishing  itself. 
Besides  the  Cabinet,  there  is  a  Privy  Council,  whose  function  is  to 
tender  advice.  The  empire  is  divided  into  prefectures  {ken), — 
each  with  a  governor, — which  have,  as  in  France,  replaced  the 
old  historical  "provinces."  There  are  three  capital  cities,  Tokyo, 
Kyoto,  and  Osaka.  An  unusually  large  proportion  of  the  revenue 
is  raised  by  land  taxation.  Viewed  from  an  Anglo-Saxon  point 
of  view,  the  Japanese  are  a  much-governed  people,  officials  being 
numerous,  their  authority  great,  and  all  sorts  of  things  which 
with  us  are  left  to  private  enterprise  being  here  in  the  hands 
of  government.  But  the  contrast  is  less  in  this  respect  between 
Japan  and  the  nations  of  Continental  Europe.  Administrative 
changes  are  frequent ;  corrupt  practices  often  come  to  light ; 
political  parties,  too,  form  and  dissolve  and  form  again  around 
men  rather  than  around  measures.  Still,  there  is  continuity,  the 
aims  of  the  government  as  a  whole  running  on  in  the  same 
groove,  despite  changes  of  personnel.  The  profound  respect  for 
the  throne  gives  continuity.  So  does  the  character  of  Marquis 
ltd,  the  ablest  man  in  Japan,  who  always  takes  the  helm  whenever 
the  ship  comes  to  some  dangerous  shoal  or  current. 

In  any  case,  and  whatever  its  shortcomings,  the  ruling  oligarchy 
has  guided  Japan  with  admirable  skill  and  courage  through  the 
perils  of  the  last  five-and-thirty  years.  The  nation  may  have — 
probably  has — further  administrative  changes  in  store  for  it.  One 
thing  is  certain  : — these  changes  will  all  be  along  that  road  leading 
westward,  which  the  men  of  1868  were  the  first  to  open  out.  If  it 
is  true  that  the  last  fifteen   years  have  witnessed  a  cooling  towards 


Harakiri. 


219 


Europeanism,  this  has  been  a  matter  of  sentiment  only,  a 
return  from  cosmopolitanism  to  nationalism  in  matters  of  minor 
importance,  and  has  affected  nothing  practical  by  so  much  as  a 
hair's  breadth.  Inquisitive  persons  from  home,  who  remember 
the  Stuarts  and  the  Legitimists  and  Don  Carlos,  sometimes  ask 
whether  there  may  not  be  a  Japanese  reaction  in  favour  of 
feudalism.  No !  never, — not  till  the  sun  stops  shining  and  water 
begins  to  flow  uphill.     (Compare  Article  on  Clans.) 

Books  recommended.  Japan,  by  Walter  Dickson,  gives  perhaps  the  fullest 
account  of  the  government  in  feudal  days.  See  also  Brinkley's  Japan  and  China  for  all 
periods. — Marquis  Ito's  Commentaries  on  the  Constitution  cf  'the  Empire  of  Japan  possess 
exceptional  interest,  as  the  utterances  of  the  man  who  was  mainly  instrumental  in  framing 
that  constitution.  The  historical  statements  in  the  Commentaries  must,  however,  be 
received  with  extreme  caution,  the  Marquis  being  less  of  a  historian  than  of  a  statesman. 
To  take  but  one  instance  among  several : — in  the  authorised  English  version,  all  the 
Empresses  are  converted  into  Emperors.  Thus  we  find  "the  Emperor  Suiko,"  "the 
Emperor  Gensho,"  and  so  on,  which  is  exactly  as  if  an  English  constitutional  historian 
should  refer  to  "the  Emperor  Maud"  or  "King  Elizabeth!"  There  may,  too,  be 
observed  throughout  a  tendency  to  minimise  the  differences  that  separate  ancient  from 
modern  times.  Along  with  the  Commentaries,  are  printed  the  text  of  the  Constitution 
itself  and  several  other  important  documents  of  a  cognate  character. — Translations  of  all 
the  more  important  government  papers,  and  reports  of  the  proceedings  of  the  Diet  will  be 
found  in  the  files  of  the  Japan  Mail,  published  at  Yokohama. 

Harakiri.  Need  we  say  that  harakiri  was  for  centuries  the 
favourite  Japanese  method  of  committing  suicide  ?  There  were 
two  kinds  of  harakiri, — obligatory  and  voluntary.  The  former 
was  a  boon  granted  by  government,  who  graciously  permitted 
criminals  of  the  Samurai  class  thus  to  destroy  themselves  instead 
of  being  handed  over  to  the  common  executioner.  Time  and 
place  were  officially  notified  to  the  condemned,  and  officials 
were  sent  to  witness  the  ceremony.  This  custom  is  extinct. 
Voluntary  harakiri  was  practised  by  men  in  hopeless  trouble, 
also  out  of  loyalty  to  a  dead  superior,  aud  in  order  to  protest — 
when  other  protests  might  be  unavailing— against  the  erroneous 
conduct  of  a  living  superior.  Examples  of  this  class  still  take 
place.  That  of  a  young  man  called  Ohara  Takeyoshi,  which 
occurred  in  1 891,  is  typical.  He  was  a  lieutenant  in  the  Yezo 
militia,  and  ripped  himself  up  in  front  of  the  graves  of  his  ancestors 


220  Harakiri. 

at  the  temple  of  Saitokuji  in  Tokyo.  Following  the  routine 
customary  in  such  cases,  Lieutenant  Ohara  left  a  paper  setting 
forth  the  motives  of  his  act,  the  only  innovation  being  that  this 
document  was  directed  to  be  forwarded  to  the  Tokyo  News  Agency 
for  publication  in  all  the  newspapers.  The  writer,  it  seems,  had 
brooded  for  eleven  years  over  the  likelihood  of  Russian  encroach- 
ment, and  feeling  that  his  living  words  and  efforts  were  doomed 
to  fruitlessness,  resolved  to  try  what  his  death  might  effect.  In  this 
particular  instance  no  immediate  result  was  obtained.  Nevertheless 
Ohara's  self-sacrifice,  its  origin  in  political  considerations,  and  the 
expectation  that  an  appeal  from  the  grave  would  move  men's  hearts 
more  surely  than  any  arguments  urged  by  a  living  voice, — all  this 
was  in  complete  accord  with  Japanese  ways  of  thinking.  The 
government  had  no  sooner  yielded  to  the  pressure  of  France, 
Russia,  and  Germany  in  1895  by  giving  up  the  conquered  territory 
of  Liao-tung,  than  forty  military  men  committed  suicide  in  the 
ancient  way.  As  we  sit  correcting  these  proofs  in  June,  1904,  news 
comes  of  many  officers  and  men  on  board  a  captured  transport  rip- 
ping themselves  up  rather  than  surrender  to  the  foe.  Even  women 
are  found  ready  to  kill  themselves  for  loyalty  and  duty,  but  the 
approved  method  in  their  case  is  cutting  the  throat.  Nowise  strange, 
but  admirable  according  to  Japanese  ideas,  was  it  that  when,  in  1895, 
the  tidings  of  Lieutenant  Asada's  death  on  the  battle-field,  were 
brought  to  his  young  wife,  she  at  once,  and  with  her  father's  consent, 
resolved  to  follow  him.  Having  thoroughly  cleansed  the  house  and 
arrayed  herself  in  her  costliest  robes,  she  placed  her  husband's 
portrait  in  the  alcove,  and  prostrating  herself  before  it,  cut  her 
throat  with  a  dagger  that  had  been  a  wedding  gift. 

The  courage  to  take  life — be  it  one's  own  or  that  of  others — 
ranks  extraordinarily  high  in  public  esteem.  It  would  appear  as 
if  political  assassination  were  at  once  forgiven,  when  the  desperado 
seals  it  with  his  own  blood.  Nishino  Buntaro,  the  Shinto  fanatic 
who  stabbed  the  Minister  of  Education,  Viscount  Mori,  on  the 
day  of  the  proclamation  of  the  Constitution  in  1889,  and  who 
himself  perished   in   the   fray,  was   worshipped   almost  as   a  god, 


Harakiri.  2  2 1 

his  tomb  was  constantly  decked  with  flowers,  incense  was  burnt 
before  it,  verses  were  hung  over  it,  pilgrimages  made  to  it. 
The  would-be  assassin  of  Count  Okuma  met  with  scarcely  less 
glorification.  At  last,  in  1891,  the  government  actually  felt  itself 
constrained  to  issue  an  ordinance  prohibiting  costly  funerals  and 
other  posthumous  honours  to  deceased  criminals. 

Harakiri  is  not  an  aboriginal  Japanese  custom.  It  was  evoked 
gradually  during  the  Middle  Ages.  The  cause  of  it  is  probably 
to  be  sought  in  the  desire  on  the  part  of  vanquished  warriors  to 
avoid  the  humiliation  of  falling  into  their  enemies'  hands  alive. 
Thus  the  custom  would  come  to  be  characteristic  of  the  military 
class,  in  other  words,  of  the  feudal  nobility  and  gentry  ;  and  from 
being  a  custom,  it  next  developed  into  a  privilege  about  A.D. 
1 500,  as  stated  above. 

Harakiri  has  sometimes  been  translated  "  the  happy  despatch,'' 
but  the  original  Japanese  is  less  euphemistic.  It  means  "  belly- 
cutting  ; "  and  that  is  what  the  operation  actually  consists  in, 
neither  more  nor  less.  Or  rather,  no  :  there  is  more.  In  modern 
times,  at  least,  people  not  having  always  succeeded  in  making 
away  with  themselves  expeditiously  by  this  method,  it  became 
usual  for  a  friend — a  "  best  man,"  as  one  might  say — to  stand 
behind  the  chief  actor  in  the  tragedy.  When  the  latter  thrust  his 
dirk  into  himself,  the  friend  at  once  chopped  off  his  head. 

It  is  an  odd  fact  that  the  Japanese  word  harakiri,  so  well-known 
all  over  the  world,  is  but  little  used  by  the  Japanese  themselves. 
The  Japanese  almost  always  prefer  to  employ  the  synonym 
seppuku,  which  they  consider  more  elegant  because  it  is  derived 
from  the  Chinese.  After  all,  they  are  not  singular  in  this  matter. 
Do  not  we  ourselves  say  "  abdomen,''"  when  what  we  mean  is  plain 
Saxon — well,  we  will  not  shock  ears  polite  by  mentioning  the  word 
again.  Latinisms  in  English,  "  Chinesisms  "  in  Japanese,  cover  a 
multitude  of  sins. 

Suicide  of  a  more  commonplace  type  than  harakiri  has  always 
been  extremely  common,  especially  what  is  termed  shiziju,  that 
is,    suicide   for   love.       Numberless   are   the   tales    of    men   who, 


222  Heraldry. 

being  unable  to  wed  the  object  of  their  passion, — generally  some 
frail  beauty, — have  bound  themselves  tightly  to  her  with  a  rope, 
and  then  precipitated  themselves  into  the  water.  But  Japan  is 
modernised  even  in  this  respect  : — instead  of  the  rope  and  the 
watery  grave,  we  hear  now  of  lovers  taking  doses  of  chloroform,  or 
throwing  themselves  under  an  approaching  train.  One  can  hardly 
take  up  a  newspaper  without  lighting  on  some  such  story. 

Books  recommended.  The  whole  subject  is  elaborately  described  in  Appendix  A 
to  the  Tales  of  Old  Japan,  by  A.  B.  Mitford,  who  himself  had  the  gruesome  opportunity 
of  seeing  harakiri  performed. — Our  own  Ro7nanised  Japanese  Reader,  Extract  No.  63, 
gives  a  literal  translation  of  a  native  account  of  the  harakiri  of  Asano,  Lord  of  Ako,  whose 
death  was  so  dramatically  avenged  by  the  famous  "  Forty-seven  Ronins." 

Heraldry.  In  Japan,  as  in  Europe,  feudalism  produced  the 
"  nobyl  and  gentyl  sciaunce  "  of  heraldry,  though  the  absence  of 
such  powerful  stimuli  as  tournaments  and  the  crusades  prevented 
Japanese  heraldry  from  developing  to  the  same  high  degree  of 
complexity  as  the  heraldry  of  the  West.  Moreover,  the  use  of 
crests  is  not  a  privilege  confined  to  persons  of  quality  : — even 
tradesmen  may  use  them.  Most  of  the  great  Daimyos  possessed 
three  crests  or  badges  (?non),  the  lesser  Daimyos  had  two,  ordinary 
Samurai  one.  These  served  in  time  of  war  to  adorn  the  breast- 
plate, the  helmet,  and  the  flag.  In  time  of  peace  the  crest  was 
worn,  as  it  still  is  by  those  who  retain  the  native  garb,  in  live 
places  on  the  upper  garment,  namely,  at  the  back  of  the  neck, 
on  each  sleeve,  and  on  each  breast.  Various  other  articles  were 
marked  with  it,  such  as  lanterns,  travelling-cases  (what  modern 
curio-dealers  call  "  Daimyo  boxes " ),  etc.,  etc.  The  Imperial 
family  has  two  crests,  —  the  sixteen-petalled  chrysanthemum 
{kiku  no  go  ?iion),  and  the  leaves  and  flowers  of  the  paulownia 
(kin  no  go  mon).  The  crest  of  the  Tokugawa  dynasty  of  Shoguns 
was  three  asarum  leaves  (milsu-aoi),  whose  points  meet  in  the 
centre.  The  bamboo,  the  rose,  the  peony,  even  the  radish,  have 
furnished  crests  for  noble  families.  Other  favourite  "  motives  "  are 
birds,  butterflies,  running  water,  fans,  feathers,  ladders,  bridle  bits, 
Chinese  characters,  and  geometrical  designs.  One  small  Daimyo, 
named  Aoki,  had  for  his  crest  the  summit  of  Fuji,  with  its  trifurcat- 


History  and  Mythology.  223 

ed   peak  issuing  from   the  clouds.     The  great  Shimazu  family  of 
Satsuma  has  the  cross  within  a  circle. 

Books  recommended.  Japanese  Heraldry,  by  T.  R.  H.  McClatchie,  printed  in 
Vol.  V.  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions.''  Our  account  is  a  precis  of  McClatchie's  essay. — 
Japaxischc  Wappen,  by  R.  Lange,  in  the  "  Mittheilungen  des  Seminars  fur  Orientalische 
Sprachen  zu  Berlin,"  1903,  is  the  most  elaborate  account  that  has  been  published. 

History  and  Mythology.  To  the  eye  of  the  critical 
investigator,  Japanese  history  properly  so-called  opens  only  in  the 
latter  part  of  the  fifth  or  the  beginning  of  the  sixth  century  after 
Christ,  when  the  gradual  spread  of  Chinese  culture,  filtering  in 
through  Korea,  had  sufficiently  dispelled  the  gloom  of  original 
barbarism  to  allow  of  the  keeping  of  records. 

The  whole  question  of  the  credibility  of  the  early  history  of 
Japan  has  been  carefully  gone  into  during  the  last  five-and-twenty 
years  by  Aston  and  others,  with  the  result  that  the  first  date 
pronounced  trustworthy  is  A.D.  461,  and  it  is  discovered  that  even 
the  annals  of  the  sixth  century  are  to  be  received  with  caution. 
We  ourselves  have  no  doubt  of  the  justice  of  this  negative  criticism, 
and  can  only  stand  in  amaze  at  the  simplicity  of  most  European 
writers,  who  have  accepted,  without  sifting  them,  the  uncritical 
statements  of  the  Japanese  annalists.  One  eminent  German  pro- 
fessor, the  late  Dr.  Hoffmann,  actually  discusses  the  hour  of  Jimmu 
Tenno's  accession  in  the  year  660  B.  C,  which  is  much  as  if 
one  should  gravely  compute  in  cubic  inches  the  size  of  the 
pumpkin  which  Cinderella's  fairy  godmother  turned  into  a  coach 
and  six.  How  comes  it  that  profound  erudition  so  often  lacks 
the  salt  of  humour  and  the  guidance  of  common  sense  ? 

Be  this  as  it  may,  criticism  is  not  at  all  a  "  Japanesey  "  thing  ; 
and  as  Japanese  art  and  literature  contain  frequent  allusions  to  the 
early  history  (so-called)  of  the  country,  the  chief  outlines  of  this 
history,  as  preserved  in  the  works  entitled  Kojiki  and  Nihongi,  both 
dating  from  the  eighth  century  after  Christ,  may  here  be  given. 
We  include  the  mythology  under  the  same  heading,  for  the  reason 
that  it  is  absolutely  impossible  to  separate  the  two.  Why,  indeed, 
attempt  to  do  so,  where  both  are  equally  fabulous  ? 


224  History  and  Mythology. 

Before,  then,  the  beginning  of  the  world  of  men,  there  existed 
numerous  generations  of  gods.  The  last  of  these  "  divine  genera- 
tions," as  they  are  termed,  were  a  brother  and  sister,  named 
respectively  Izanagi  and  Izanami,  who,  uniting  in  marriage,  gave 
birth  to  the  various  islands  of  the  Japanese  archipelago  and  to 
a  great  number  of  additional  gods  and  goddesses.  The  birth  of 
the  God  of  Fire  caused  Izanami's  death,  and  the  most  striking 
episode  of  the  whole  Japanese  mythology  ensues,  when  her 
husband,  Orpheus-like,  visits  her  at  the  gate  of  the  under-world 
to  implore  her  to  return  to  him.  She  would  fain  do  so,  and 
bids  him  wait  while  she  takes  counsel  with  the  deities  of  the 
place.  But  he,  impatient  at  her  long  tarrying,  breaks  off  one  of 
the  teeth  of  the  comb  in  his  hair,  lights  it  and  goes  in,  only  to 
find  her  a  hideous  mass  of  putrefaction,  in  the  midst  of  which 
are  seated  the  eight  Gods  of  Thunder.  Eight,  be  it  observed,  is 
the  mystic  number  of  the  Japanese,  as  six  is  the  mystic  number 
of  the  Ainos  whom  their  ancestors  drove  out. 

Returning  to  south-western  Japan,  Izanagi  purifies  himself  by 
bathing  in  a  stream,  and  as  he  does  so,  fresh  deities  are  bom 
from  each  article  of  clothing  that  he  throws  down  on  the  river- 
bank,  and  from  each  part  of  his  person.  One  of  these  deities 
was  the  Sun-Goddess  Ama-terasu,  who  was  born  from  his  left  eye, 
while  the  Moon-God  sprang  from  his  right  eye,  and  the  last  born 
of  all,  Susa-no-o,  whose  name  means  "  the  Impetuous  Male/' 
was  born  from  his  nose.  Between  these  three  children  their  father 
divides  the  inheritance  of  the  universe. 

At  this  point  the  story  loses  its  unity.  The  Moon-God  is  no 
more  heard  of,  and  the  traditions  concerning  the  Sun-Goddess 
diverge  from  those  concerning  the  Impetuous  Male  Deity  in  a 
manner  which  is  productive  of  inconsistencies  in  the  rest  of  the 
mythology.  The  Sun-Goddess  and  the  Impetuous  Male  Deity 
have  a  violent  quarrel,  and  at  last  the  latter  breaks  a  hole  in  the 
roof  of  the  hall  in  Heaven,  where  his  sister  is  sitting  at  work 
with  her  "  celestial  weaving-maidens,"  and  through  it  lets  fall  "  a 
heavenly    piebald   horse  which    he    had    flayed   with   a  backward 


History  and  Mythology.  225 

flaying."  The  consequences  of  this  impious  act  were  so  disastrous 
that  the  Sun-Goddess  withdrew  for  a  season  into  a  cave,  from 
which  the  rest  of  the  eight  hundred  myriad  deities  with  difficulty 
allured  her.  The  Impetuous  Male  Deity  was  thereupon  banished, 
and  the  Sun-Goddess  remained  mistress  of  the  field.  Yet,  strange 
to  say,  she  thenceforward  retires  into  the  background,  and  the 
most  bulky  section  of  the  mythology  consists  of  stories  concerning 
the  Impetuous  Male  Deity  and  his  descendants,  who  are  represented 
as  the  monarchs  of  Japan,  or  rather  of  the  province  of  Izumo. 
The  Impetuous  Male  Deity  himself,  whom  his  father  had  charged 
with  the  dominion  of  the  sea,  never  assumes  that  rule,  but  first 
has  a  curiously  told  amorous  adventure  and  an  encounter  with 
an  eight-forked  serpent  in  Izumo,  and  afterwards  reappears  as 
the  capricious  and  filthy  deity  of  Hades,  who,  however,  seems  to 
retain  some  authority  over  the  land  of  the  living,  as  he  invests  his 
descendant  of  the  sixth  generation  with  the  sovereignty  of  Japan. 

Of  this  latter  personage  a  whole  cycle  of  stories  is  told,  all 
centring  in  the  province  of  Izumo.  We  learn  of  his  conversations 
with  a  hare  and  with  a  rat,  of  the  prowess  and  cleverness 
which  he  displayed  on  the  occasion  of  a  visit  to  his  ancestor  in 
Hades,  which  is  in  this  cycle  of  traditions  a  much  less  mysterious 
place  than  the  Hades  visited  by  Izanami,  of  his  loves,  of  his 
triumph  over  his  eighty  brethren,  of  his  reconciliation  with  his 
jealous  consort,  and  of  his  numerous  descendants.  We  hear  too 
of  a  Lilliputian  deity,  who  comes  across  the  sea  to  request  this 
monarch  of  Izumo  to  share  the  kingdom  with  him. 

This  last-mentioned  legend  repeats  itself  in  the  sequel.  The 
Sun-Goddess  resolves  to  bestow  the  sovereignty  of  Japan  on  a 
child  of  whom  it  is  doubtful  whether  he  were  born  of  her  or  of 
her  brother,  the  Impetuous  Male  Deity.  Three  embassies  are 
sent  from  Heaven  to  Izumo  to  arrange  matters  ;  but  it  is  only 
a  fourth  that  is  successful,  the  final  ambassadors  obtaining  the 
submission  of  the  monarch  or  deity  of  Izumo,  who  surrenders 
his  throne,  and  promises  to  serve  the  new  dynasty  (apparently 
in  the  under-world)  if  a  palace  or  temple  be  built  for  him  and 


226  History  and  Mythology. 

he  be  appropriately  worshipped.  Thereupon  the  child  of  the 
deity  whom  the  Sun-Goddess  had  originally  chosen  descends  to 
earth, — not  to  Izumo  in  the  north-west,  as  the  logical  sequence 
of  the  story  would  lead  one  to  expect, — but  to  the  peak  of  a 
mountain  in  the  south-western  island  of  Kyushu. 

Here  follows  a  quaint  tale  accounting  for  the  odd  appearance 
of  the  beche-de-mer,  and  another  to  account  for  the  shortness  of 
the  lives  of  mortals,  after  which  we  are'  told  of  the  birth  under 
peculiar  circumstances  of  the  heaven-descended  deity's  three 
sons.  Two  of  these,  Hoderi  and  Hoori,  whose  names  may  be 
Englished  as  "  Fire-Shine  "  and  "  Fire-Fade,"  are  the  heroes  of 
a  very  curious  legend,  which  includes  an  elaborate  account  of  a 
visit  paid  by  the  latter  to  the  palace  of  the  God  of  Ocean,  and 
of  a  curse  or  spell  which  gained  for  him  the  victory  over  his 
elder  brother,  and  enabled  him  to  dwell  peacefully  in  his  palace 
at  Takachiho  for  the  space  of  five  hundred  and  eighty  years, — the 
first  statement  resembling  a  date  which  the  Japanese  historians 
vouchsafe.  Fire-Fade's  son  married  his  own  aunt,  and  was  the 
father  of  four  children,  one  of  whom,  "  treading  on  the  crest  of 
the  waves,  crossed  over  to  the  Eternal  Land,''  while  a  second 
"  went  into  the  sea-plain,"  and  the  two  others  moved  eastward, 
fighting  with  the  chiefs  of  Kibi  and  Yamato,  having  adventures 
with  gods  both  with  and  without  tails,  being  assisted  by  a 
miraculous  sword  and  a  gigantic  crow,  and  naming  the  various 
places  they  passed  through  after  incidents  in  their  own  career. 
One  of  these  brothers  was  Kamu-Yamato-Iware-Biko,  who  (the 
other  having  died  before  him)  is  accounted  the  first  human 
emperor  of  Japan — the  first  Mikado.  The  posthumous  name  of 
Jimmu  Tenno  was  given  to  him  more  than  fourteen  centuries 
after  the  date  which  the  historians  assign  for  his  decease. 

Henceforth  Yamato,  which  had  scarcely  been  mentioned  before, 
and  the  provinces  adjacent  to  it,  become  the  centre  of  the  story, 
and  Izumo  again  emerges  into  importance.  A  very  indecent 
love-tale  forms  a  bridge  which  unites  the  various  fragments  of 
the  mythology ;  and  the  "  Great  Deity  of  Miwa,"  who  is  identified 


History  and  Mythology.  227 

with  the  deposed  monarch  of  Izumo,  appears  on  the  scene. 
Indeed,  during  the  rest  of  the  story,  this  "Great  Deity  of  Miwaf 
and  his  colleague  the  "  Small  August  Deity  "  (Sukuna-Mi-Kami), 
the  deity  Izasa-Wake,  the  three  Water-Gods  of  Sumi,  and  the 
"  Great  Deity  of  Kazuraki "  form,  with  the  Sun-Goddess  and  with 
a  certain  divine  sword  preserved  at  the  temple  of  Isonokami  in 
Yamato,  the  only  objects  of  worship  specially  named,  the  other 
gods  and  goddesses  being  no  more  heard  of.  This  portion  of  the 
story  is  closed  by  an  account  of  the  troubles  which  inaugurated 
the  reign  of  Jimmu's  successor,  Suisei  Tenno,  and  then  occurs 
a  blank  of  (according  to  the  accepted  chronology)  five  hundred 
years,  during  which  absolutely  nothing  is  related  excepting  dreary 
genealogies,  the  place  where  each  sovereign  dwelt  and  where  he 
was  buried,  and  the  age  to  which  he  lived, — this  after  the 
minute  details  which  had  been  given  concerning  the  previous 
gods  or  monarchs  down  to  Suisei  inclusive.  It  should  likewise 
be  noted  that  the  average  age  of  the  first  seventeen  monarchs 
(counting  Jimmu  Tenno  as  the  first)  is  nearly  ninety-six  years 
if  we  follow  the  Kojiki,  and  over  a  hundred  if  we  follow  the 
accepted  chronology,  which  is  based  chiefly  on  the  divergent 
statements  contained  in  the  Nihongi.  The  age  of  several  of  the 
monarchs  exceeds  a  hundred  and  twenty  years. 

The  above-mentioned  lapse  of  a  blank  period  of  five  centuries 
brings  us  to  the  reign  of  the  emperor  known  to  history  by  the 
name  of  Sujin  Tenno,  whose  life  of  one  hundred  and  sixty-eight 
years  (one  hundred  and  twenty  according  to  the  Nihongi)  is 
supposed  to  have  immediately  preceded  the  Christian  era.  In 
this  reign,  the  former  monarch  of  Izumo  or  god  of  Miwa  again 
appears  and  produces  a  pestilence,  of  the  manner  of  staying 
which  Sujin  is  warned  in  a  dream. 

In  the  following  reign  an  elaborate  legend,  involving  a  variety 
of  circumstances  as  miraculous  as  any  in  the  earlier  portion  of 
the  mythology,  again  centres  in  the  necessity  of  pacifying  tfre 
great  god  of  Izumo ;  and  this,  with  details  of  internecine  strife 
in  the  Imperial    family,   of  the  sovereign's    amours,    and    of  the 


228  History  and  Mythology. 

importation  of  the  orange  from  the  "Eternal  Land"  (Luchu?), 
brings  us  to  the  cycle  of  traditions  of  which  Yamato-take,  a  son  of 
the  Emperor  Keiko,  is  the  hero.  This  prince,  after  assassinating 
one  of  his  brothers,  accomplishes  the  task  of  subduing  both  western 
and  eastern  Japan  ;  and  notwithstanding  certain  details  unacceptable 
to  European  taste,  his  story,  taken  as  a  whole,  is  one  of  the 
most  pleasing  in  Japanese  legend.  He  performs  marvels  of  valour, 
disguises  himself  as  a  woman  in  order  to  slay  the  brigands,  is 
the  possessor  of  a  magic  sword  and  fire-striker,  has  a  devoted 
wife  who  stills  the  fury  of  the  sea  by  sitting  down  upon  its  surface, 
has  encounters  with  a  deer  and  with  a  boar  who  are  really  gods 
in  disguise,  and  finally  dies  on  his  way  westward  before  he  can 
reach  his  home  in  Yamato.  His  death  is  followed  by  a  highly 
mythological  account  of  the  laying  to  rest  of  the  white  bird  into 
which  he  ended  by  being  transformed. 

The  succeeding  reign  is  a  blank,  and  the  next  transports  us 
without  a  word  of  warning  to  quite  another  scene.  The  sovereign's 
home  is  now  in  Kyushu — the  south- westernmost  island  of  the 
Japanese  archipelago ; — and  four  of  the  gods,  through  the  medium 
of  the  sovereign's  consort,  who  is  known  to  posterity  as  the 
Empress  Jingo,  reveal  the  existence  of  the  land  of  Korea,  of 
which,  however,  this  is  not  the  first  mention  in  the  histories. 
The  Mikado  disbelieves  the  divine  message,  and  is  punished  with 
death  for  his  incredulity.  But  the  empress,  after  a  special 
consultation  between  her  prime  minister  and  the  gods,  and  the 
performance  of  various  religious  ceremonies,  marshals  her  fleet, 
and,  with  the  assistance  of  the  fishes  both  great  and  small  and 
of  a  miraculous  wave,  reaches  Shiragi  (one  of  the  ancient  divisions 
of  Korea),  and  subdues  it.  She  then  returns  to  Japan,  the  legend 
ending  with  a  curiously  naive  tale  of  how  she  sat  a-fishing  one 
day  on  a  shoal  in  the  River  Ogawa  in  Kyushu,  with  threads 
picked  out  of  her  skirt  for  lines.  The  date  of  the  conquest  of 
Korea,  according  to  the  orthodox  chronology,  is  A.D.  200. 

The  next  episode  is  the  warrior-empress's  voyage  up  to  Yamato, 
— another  joint  in  the  story,  by  means  of  which  the  Yamato  cycle 


History  and  Mythology.  229 

of  legends  and  the  Kyushu  cycle  are  brought  into  apparent  unity. 
The  Nihongi  has  even  improved  upon  this  by  making  Jing5's 
husband  dwell  in  Yamato  at  the  beginning  of  his  reign  and  only 
remove  to  Kyushu  later,  so  that  if  the  less  skilfully  elaborated 
Kojiki  had  not  been  preserved,  the  tangled  skein  of  the  tradition 
would  have  been  still  more  difficult  to  unravel.  The  empress's 
army  defeats  the  troops  raised  by  the  native  kings  or  princes,  who 
are  represented  as  her  step-sons,  and  from  that  time  forward  the 
story  runs  on  in  a  single  channel,  with  Yamato  as  its  scene  of 
action. 

China  likewise  is  now  first  mentioned,  books  are  said  to  have 
been  brought  over  from  the  mainland,  and  we  hear  of  the  gradual 
introduction  of  various  useful  arts  by  Chinese  and  Korean  im- 
migrants. Even  the  annals  of  the  reign  of  Jingo's  son,  Ojin 
Tenno,  however,  during  which  this  civilising  impulse  from 
abroad  is  said  to  have  commenced,  are  not  free  from  details 
as  miraculous  as  any  in  the  earlier  portions  of  the  history.  The 
monarch  himself  is  said  to  have  lived  a  hundred  and  thirty 
years,  while  his  successor  lived  eighty-three  (according  to  the 
Nihongi,  Ojin  lived  a  hundred  and  ten,  and  his  successor  Nintoku 
reigned  eighty-seven  years).  It  is  not  till  the  next  reign  that  the 
miraculous  ceases,  a  fact  which  significantly  coincides  with  the 
time  at  which,  says  the  Nihongi,  "historiographers  were  first 
appointed  to  all  the  provinces  to  record  words  and  events,  and 
forward  archives  from  all  directions." 

This  brings  us  to  the  beginning  of  the  fifth  century  of  our  era, 
just  three  centuries  before  the  compilation  of  the  annals  that  have 
come  down  to  us,  but  only  two  centuries  before  the  compilation 
of  the  first  history  of  which  mention  has  been  preserved.  From 
that  time  forward  the  story  in  the  Kojiki,  though  not  well  told, 
gives  us  some  very  curious  pictures,  and  reads  as  if  it  were 
trustworthy.  It  is  tolerably  full  for  a  few  reigns,  after  which  it 
again  dwindles  into  more  genealogies,  ending  with  the  death  of 
the  Empress  Suiko  in  A.D.  628.  The  Nihongi,  on  the  contrary, 
supplies  full  details  as  far  as  A.D.  701,  that  is,  to  within  nineteen 
years  of  the  date  of  its  compilation. 


230  History  and  Mythology. 

The  reader  who  has  followed  this  summary,  or  who  will  take 
the  trouble  to  study  the  original  Japanese  texts  for  himself,  will 
perceive  that  there  is  no  break  in  the  story — at  least  no  chrono- 
logical break — and  no  break  between  the  fabulous  and  the  real, 
unless  it  be  in  the  fifth  century  of  our  era,  or  more  than  a 
thousand  years  later  than  the  date  usually  assumed  as  the 
starting-point  of  authentic  Japanese  history.  The  only  breaks 
are  topographical,  not  chronological. 

This  fact  of  the  continuity  of  the  Japanese  mythology  and 
history  has  been  fully  recognised  by  the  leading  native  commenta- 
tors, whose  opinions  are  those  considered  orthodox  by  modern 
Shintoists,  and  they  draw  from  it  the  conclusion  that  everything 
in  the  standard  national  histories  must  be  accepted  as  literal 
truth, — the  supernatural  equally  with  the  natural.  But  the  general 
habit  of  the  more  sceptical  Japanese  of  the  present  day,  that  is 
to  say,  of  ninety-nine  out  of  every  hundred  of  the  educated,  is 
to  reject  or  rather  to  ignore  the  legends  of  the  gods,  while 
implicitly  believing  the  legends  of  the  emperors,  from  Jimmu 
Tenno,  in  B.C.  660,  downwards.  For  so  arbitrary  a  distinction 
there  is  not  the  shadow  of  justification.*  The  so-called  history 
of  Jimmu  the  first  earthly  Mikado,  of  Jingo  the  conqueror  of 
Korea,  of  Yamato-take,  and  of  the  rest,  stands  or  falls  by  exactly 
the  same  criterion  as  the  legends  of  the  creator  and  creatress 
Izanagi  and  Izanami.  Both  sets  of  tales  are  told  in  the  same 
books,  in  the  same  style,  and  with  an  almost  equal  amount  of 
supernatural  detail.     The  so-called  historical  part  is  as  devoid  as 


*  Since  this  article  was  first  published,  the  Japanese  government,  obscurantist  in 
nothing  but  the  teaching  of  history,  has  produced  convincing  proof  of  the  advisability 
of  orthodoxy  in  matters  historical  by  dismissing  Prof.  Kume  from  his  chair  at  the 
University  of  Tokyo  for  no  other  offence  than  that  of  writing  critically  on  the  subject 
of  the  early  Mikados.  This  step,  taken  in  1892,  has  duly  served  pour  encoitrager  les 
autres.  Thus  we  find  Mr.  Haga,  in  his  otherwise  excellent  little  "  Lectures  on  Japanese 
Literature"  (^^*^^-^^),  gravely  informing  his  hearers  that  some  of  the  odes 
preserved  in  the  Kojiki  and  Nihongi  were  composed  by  the  gods,  some  by  Jimmu 
Tenno  and  other  ancient  Mikados,  one  by  a  monkey  !  The  ridicule  due  to  these 
absurdities  must  recoil  on  the  government  which  imposes  on  highly  educated  men  such 
humiliating  restrictions. 


History  and  Mythology.  231 

the  other  of  all  contemporary  evidence.  It  is  contradicted  by 
the  more  trustworthy,  because  contemporary,  Chinese  and  Korean 
records,  and — to  turn  from  negative  to  positive  testimony — can 
be  proved  in  some  particulars  to  rest  on  actual  forgery.  For 
instance,  the  fictitious  nature  of  the  calendars  employed  to  cal- 
culate the  early  dates  for  about  thirteen  centuries  (from  B.C.  660 
onward)  has  not  altogether  escaped  the  notice  even  of  the  Japanese 
themselves,  and  has  been  clearly  exposed  for  European  readers 
by  that  careful  investigator,  the  late  Mr.  William  Bramsen,  who 
says,  when  discussing  them  in  the  Introduction  to  his  Japanese 
Chronological  Tables,  "It  is  hardly  too  severe  to  style  this  one 
of  the  greatest  literary  frauds  ever  perpetrated." 

But  a  truce  to  this  discussion.  We  have  only  entered  into  it 
because  the  subject,  though  perhaps  dry,  is  at  least  new,  and 
because  one's  patience  is  worn  out  by  seeing  book  after  book 
glibly  quote  the  traditional  dates  of  early  Japanese  history  as  if 
they  were  solid  truth,  instead  of  being  the  merest  haphazard  guesses 
and  baseless  imaginings  of  a  later  age.  Arrived  at  A.D.  600,  we 
stand  on  terra  finna,  and  can  afford  to  push  on  more  quickly. 

About  that  time  occurred  the  greatest  event  of  Japanese  history, 
the  conversion  of  the  nation  to  Buddhism  (approximately  A.D. 
552 — 621).  So  far  as  can  be  gathered  from  the  accounts  of  the 
early  Chinese  travellers,  Chinese  civilisation  had  slowly — very 
slowly — been  gaining  ground  in  the  archipelago  ever  since  the 
third  century  after  Christ.  But  when  the  Buddhist  missionaries 
crossed  the  water,  all  Chinese  institutions  followed  them  and  came 
in  with  a  rush.  Mathematical  instruments  and  calendars  were 
introduced ;  books  began  to  be  written  (the  earliest  that  has 
survived,  and  indeed  nearly  the  earliest  of  all,  is  the  already- 
mentioned  Kojiki,  dating  from  A.D.  712)  ;  the  custom  of  abdicat- 
ing the  throne  in  order  to  spend  old  age  in  prayer  was  adopted, — 
a  custom  which,  more  than  anything  else,  led  to  the  effacement  of 
the  Mikado's  authority  during  the  Middle  Ages. 

Sweeping  changes  in  political  arrangements  began  to  be  made 
in  the  year  645,  and  before  the  end  of  the   eighth    century,  the 


232  History  and  Mythology. 

government  had  been  entirely  remodelled  on  the  Chinese  centralis- 
ed bureaucratic  plan,  with  a  regular  system  of  ministers  responsible 
to  the  sovereign,  who,  as  "Son  of  Heaven/'  was  theoretically 
absolute.  In  practice  this  absolutism  lasted  but  a  short  time, 
because  the  entourage  and  mode  of  life  of  the  Mikados  were  not 
such  as  to  make  of  them  able  rulers.  They  passed  their  time 
surrounded  only  by  women  and  priests,  oscillating  between  in- 
dolence and  debauchery,  between  poetastering  and  gorgeous 
temple  services.  This  was  the  brilliant  age  of  Japanese  classical 
literature,  which  lived  and  moved  and  had  its  being  in  the 
atmosphere  of  an  effeminate  Court.  The  Fujiwara  family  engrossed 
the  power  of  the  state  during  this  early  epoch  (A.D.  670 — 1050). 
While  their  sons  held  all  the  great  posts  of  government,  their 
daughters  were  married  to  puppet  emperors. 

The  next  change  resulted  from  the  impatience  of  the  always 
manly  and  warlike  provincial  gentry  at  the  sight  of  this  sort  of 
petticoat  government.  The  great  families  of  Taira  and  Minamoto 
arose,  and  struggled  for  and  alternately  held  the  reins  of  power 
during  the  second  half  of  the  eleventh  and  the  whole  of  the 
twelfth  century.  Japan  was  now  converted  into  a  camp ;  her  in- 
stitutions were  feudalised.  The  real  master  of  the  empire  was 
he  who,  strongest  with  his  sword  and  bow,  and  heading  the  most 
numerous  host,  could  partition  out  the  land  among  the  chief  barons, 
his  retainers.  By  the  final  overthrow  of  the  Taira  family  at  the  sea- 
fight  of  Dan-no-ura  in  A.D.  1185,  Yoritomo,  the  chief  of  the  Mina- 
motos,  rose  to  supreme  power,  and  obtained  from  the  Court  at 
Kyoto  the  title  of  Shogun,  literally  "  Generalissimo,"  which  had 
till  then  been  applied  in  its  proper  meaning  to  those  generals  who 
were  sent  from  time  to  time  to  subdue  the  Ainos  or  rebellious 
provincials,  but  which  thenceforth  took    to   itself  a  special  sense, 

somewhat  as  the  word  Impcraior  (also  meaning  originally  "gene- 
ral ")  did  in  Rome.  The  coincidence  is  striking.  So  is  the 
contrast.  For,  as  Imperial  Rome  never  ceased  to  be  theoretically 
a  republic,  Japan  contrariwise,  though  practically  and  indeed 
avowedly  ruled  by  the  Shoguns  from  A.D.    11 90  to  1867,  always 


History  and  Mythology.  235 

retained  the  Mikado  as  theoretical  head  of  the  state,  descendant  of 
the  Sun-Goddess,  fountain  of  all  honour.  There  never  were  two 
emperors,  acknowledged  as  such,  one  spiritual  and  one  secular,  as 
has  been  so  often  asserted  by  European  writers.  There  never  was 
but  one  emperor, — an  emperor  powerless,  it  is  true,  seen  only  by 
the  women  who  attended  him,  often  a  mere  infant  in  arms,  who 
was  discarded  on  reaching  adolescence  for  another  infant  in  arms. 
Still,  he  was  the  theoretical  head  of  the  state,  whose  authority  was 
only  delegated  to  the  Shogun  as,  so  to  say,  Mayor  of  the  Palace. 

By  a  curious  parallelism  of  destiny,  the  Shogunate  itself  more 
than  once  showed  signs  of  fading  away  from  substance  into 
shadow.  Yoritomo's  descendants  did  not  prove  worthy  of  him, 
and  for  more  than  a  century  (A.D.  1205 — 1333)  the  real  authority 
was  wielded  by  the  so-called  "Regents'"  of  the  Hoj5  family,  while 
their  liege  lords,  the  Shoguns,  though  holding  a  nominal  court  at 
Kamakura,  were  for  all  that  period  little  better  than  empty  names. 
So  completely  were  the  Hojos  masters  of  the  whole  country  that 
they  actually  had  their  deputy  governors  at  Kyoto  and  in  Kyushu 
in  the  south-west,  and  thought  nothing  of  banishing  Mikados  to 
distant  islands.  Their  rule  was  made  memorable  by  the  repulse 
of  the  Mongol  fleet  sent  by  Kublai  Khan  with  the  purpose  of 
adding  Japan  to  his  gigantic  dominions.  This  was  at  the  end  of 
the  thirteenth  century,  since  which  time  Japan  has  never  been 
attacked  from  without. 

During  the  fourteenth  century,  even  the  dowager-like  calm  of 
the  Court  of  Kyoto  was  broken  by  internecine  strife.  Two 
branches  of  the  Imperial  house,  supported  each  by  different  feudal 
chiefs,  disputed  the  crown.  One  was  called  the  Hokucho,  or 
■l  Northern  Court,"  the  other  the  Nanchd,  or  "  Southern  Court." 
After  lasting  some  sixty  years,  this  contest  terminated  in  A.D.  1392 
by  the  triumph  of  the  Northern  dynasty,  whose  cause  the  powerful 
Ashikaga  family  had  espoused.  From  1338  down  to  the  close 
of  the  sixteenth  century,  the  Ashikagas  rulecl  Japan  as  Shoguns. 
Their  Court  was  a  centre  of  elegance,  at  which  painting  flourished, 
ancr~IrTe~lyric"~ihTmin.,   and    the  tea   ceremonies,    and    the   highly 


234  History  and  Mythology. 

intricate  arts  of  gardening  and  flower  arrangement.  But  they 
allowed  themselves  to  sink  into  effeminacy  and  sloth,  as  the 
Mikados  had  done  before  them ;  and  political  authority,  after 
being  for  some  time  administered  less  by  them  than  in  their 
name,  fell  from  them  altogether  in  1573,  although  the  last 
representative  of  the  line  continued  to  bear  the  empty  title  of 
Shogun  till  his  death  in  1597. 

Meanwhile  Japan  had  been  discovered  by  the  Portuguese  (A.D. 
1542) ;  and  the  imprudent  conduct  of  the  Portuguese  and  Spanish 
friars  {baleren,  as  they  were  called — a  corruption  of  the  word  padre) 
made  of  the  Christian  religion  an  additional  source  of  discord. 
Japan  fell  into  utter  anarchy.  Each  baron  in  his  fastness  was  a 
law  unto  himself.  Then,  in  the  latter  half  of  the  sixteenth  century, 
there  arose  successively  three  great  men, — Oda  Nobunaga,  the 
Taiko  Hideyoshi,*  and  Tokugawa  Ieyasu.  The  first  of  these  con- 
ceived the  idea  of  centralising  all  the  authority  of  the  state  in  a 
single  person ;  the  second,  Hideyoshi,  who  has  been  called  the 
Napoleon  of  Japan,  actually  made  himself  master  of  the  whole 
country,  and  added  the  invasion  of  Korea  (A.D.  1592 — 1598)  to 
his  domestic  triumphs  as  a  preliminary  step  towards  the  conquest 
of  China.  Shortly  after  his  death  in  1598,  Ieyasu,  setting 
Hideyoshi's  youthful  son  aside,  stepped  into  the  vacant  place.  An 
able  general,  unsurpassed  as  a  diplomat  and  administrator,  he  first 
quelled  all  the  turbulent  barons,  then  bestowed  a  considerable 
portion  of  their  lands  on  his  own  kinsmen  and  dependents,  and 
either  broke  or  balanced,  by  a  judicious  distribution  of  other  fiefs 
over  different  provinces  of  the  empire,  the  might  of  those  greater 
feudal  lords,  such  as  Satsuma  and  Choshu,  whom  it  was  impossible 
to  put  altogether  out  of  the  way.  The  Court  of  Kyoto  was  treated 
by  him  respectfully,  and  investiture  as  Shogun  for  himself  and  his 
heirs  duly  obtained  from  the  Mikado. 

In   order   further  to  break  the  might  of  the  Daimyos,    Ieyasu 

*  Taiko  (;fc|fi|),  which  means  "great  councillor,"  was  the  recognised  title  of  a  retired 
regent  {kwnmpaku) ;  but  being  rarely  applied  to  any  except  Hideyoshi,  it  has  almost 
come  to  form  part  of  his  name  in  popular  parlance. 


History  and  Mythology.  235 

compelled  them  to  pass  every  alternate  year  at  Yedo,  which  he  had 
chosen  for  his  capital  in  1590,  and  to  establish  their  wives  and 
families  permanently  there  as  hostages.  What  Ieyasu  sketched 
out,  the  third  Shogun  of  his  line,  Iemitsu,  perfected.  From  that 
time  forward,  "Old  Japan,"  as  we  know  it  from  the  Dutch 
accounts,  from  art,  from  the  stage,  was  crystallised  for  two  hundred 
and  fifty  years, — the  Old  Japan  of  isolation  (for  Iemitsu  shut  the 
country  up,  to  prevent  complications  with  the  Spaniards  and 
Portuguese),  the  Old  Japan  of  picturesque  feudalism,  of  harakirt, 
of  a  society  ranged  in  castes  and  officered  by  spies  and  censors, 
the  Old  Japan  of  an  ever-increasing  skill  in  lacquer  and  porcelain, 
of  aristocratic  punctilio,  of  supremely  exquisite  taste. 

Unchangeable  to  the  outward  eye  of  contemporaries,  Japan  had 
not  passed  a  hundred  years  under  the  Tokugawa  regime  before 
the  seeds  of  the  disease  which  finally  killed  that  regime  were 
sown.  Strangely  enough,  the  instrument  of  destruction  was 
historical  research.  Ieyasu  himself  had  been  a  great  patron  of 
literature.  His  grandson,  the  second  Prince  of  Mito,  inherited 
his  taste.  Under  the  auspices  of  this  Japanese  Maecenas  a  school 
of  literati  arose,  to  whom  the  antiquities  of  their  country  were 
all  in  all, — Japanese  poetry  and  romance,  as  against  the  Chinese 
Classics  ;  the  native  religion,  Shinto,  as  against  the  foreign  religion, 
Buddhism  ;  hence,  by  an  inevitable  extension,  the  ancient  legiti- 
mate dynasty  of  the  Mikados,  as  against  the  upstart  Shoguns. 
Of  course  this  political  portion  of  the  doctrine  of  the  literary 
party  was  kept  in  the  background  at  first ;  for  those  were  not  days 
when  opposition  to  the  existing  government  could  be  expressed 
or  even  hinted  at  without  danger.  Nevertheless  it  gradually 
grew  in  importance,  so  that,  when  Commodore  Perry  came  with 
his  big  guns  (A.D.  1853 — 4),  he  found  a  government  already 
tottering  to  its  fall,  many  who  cared  little  for  the  Mikado's 
abstract  rights  caring  a  great  deal  for  the  chance  of  aggrandising 
their  own  families  at  the  Shogun's  expense. 

The  Shogun  yielded  to  the  demands  of  Perry  and  of  the 
representatives    of  the    other     foreign    powers — England,    France, 


236  History  and  Mythology. 

Russia — who  followed  in  Perry's  train,  and  he  consented  to  open 
Yokohama,  Hakodate,  and  certain  other  ports  to  foreign  trade 
and  residence  (1857 — 9).  He  even  sent  embassies  to  the  United 
States  and  to  Europe  in  i860  and  1861.  The  knowledge  of  the 
outer-world  possessed  by  the  Court  of  Yedo,  though  not  extensive, 
was  sufficient  to  assure  the  Shogun  and  his  advisers  that  it  were 
vain  to  refuse  what  the  Western  powers  claimed.  The  Court  of 
Kyoto  had  no  means  of  acquiring  even  this  modicum  of  worldly 
wisdom.  According  to  its  view,  Japan,  "  the  land  of  the  gods," 
should  never  be  polluted  by  outsiders,  the  ports  should  be  closed 
again,  and  the  "  barbarians  "  expelled  at  all  hazards. 

What  specially  tended  to  complicate  matters  at  this  crisis  was 
the  independent  action  of  certain  Daimyos.  One  of  them,  the 
Prince  of  Choshu,  acting,  as  is  believed,  under  secret  instructions 
from  the  Court  of  Ky5to,  fired  on  ships  belonging  to  France, 
Holland,  and  the  United  States, — this,  too,  at  the  very  moment 
(1863)  when  the  Shogun's  government,  placed  between  foreign 
aggression  and  home  tumult,  as  between  hammer  and  anvil, 
was  doing  its  utmost  to  effect  by  diplomacy  the  departure  of  the 
foreigners  whom  it  had  been  driven  to  admit  a  few  years  before. 
The  consequence  of  this  act  was  what  is  called  "  the  Shimonoseki 
Affair/'  namely,  the  bombardment  of  Shimonoseki,  Choshu's  chief 
seaport,  by  the  combined  fleets  of  the  powers  that  had  been 
insulted,  together  with  Great  Britain  which  espoused  their  cause 
on  the  ground  of  the  solidarity  of  all  foreign  interests  in  Japan. 
An  indemnity  of  $  3,000,000  was  exacted, — a  last  blow,  which 
broke  the  Shogunate's  back.  The  Shogun  Iemochi  attempted 
to  punish  Choshu  for  the  humiliation  which  he  had  brought  on 
Japan,  but  failed,  was  himself  defeated  by  the  latter' s  troops,  and 
died.  Hitotsu-bashi  (also  called  Keiki),  the  last  of  his  line, 
succeeded  him.  But  the  Court  of  Kyoto,  prompted  by  the  great 
Daimyos  of  Choshu  and  Satsuma,  suddenly  decided  on  the 
abolition  of  the  Shogunate.  The  Shogun  submitted  to  the  decree, 
and  those  of  his  followers  who  did  not  were  routed, — first  at 
Fushimi    near    Kyoto    (17th    January,    1868),    then    at    Ueno    in 


History  and  Mythology.  237 

Yedo  (4th  July,  1868),  then  in  Aizu  (6th  November,  1868),  and 
lastly  at  Hakodate  (27th  June,  1869),  where  some  of  them  had 
endeavoured  to  set  up  an  independent  republic. 

The  government  of  the  country  was  reorganised  during  1867-8, 
nominally  on  the  basis  of  a  pure  absolutism,  with  the  Mikado 
as  sole  wielder  of  all  authority  both  legislative  and  executive. 
Thus  the  literary  party  had  triumphed.  All  their  dreams  were 
realised.  They  were  henceforth  to  have  Japan  for  the  Japanese. 
The  Shogunate,  which  had  admitted  the  hated  barbarians,  was  no 
more.  Even  their  hope  of  supplanting  Buddhism  by  the  national 
religion,  Shinto,  was  in  great  measure  accomplished.  They 
believed  that  not  only  European  innovations,  but  everything — 
even  Japanese — that  was  newer  than  A.D.  500,  would  be  forever 
swept  away.  Things  were  to  go  back  to  what  they  had  been  in 
the  primitive  ages,  when  Japan  was  really  "  the  land  of  the  gods." 

From  this  dream  they  were  soon  roughly  wakened.  The 
shrewd  warriors  of  Satsuma  and  Choshu,  who  had  humoured  the 
ignorance  of  the  Court  and  the  fads  of  the  scholars  only  as  long 
as  their  common  enemy,  the  Shogunate,  remained  in  existence, 
now  turned  round,  and  declared  in  favour,  not  merely  of  foreign 
intercourse,  but  of  the  Europeanisation  of  their  own  country. 
History  has  never  witnessed  a  more  sudden  voile-face.  History 
has  never  witnessed  a  wiser  one.  We  foreigners,  being  mere 
lookers-on,  may  no  doubt  sometimes  regret  the  substitution  of 
commonplace  European  ways  for  the  glitter,  the  glamour  of 
picturesque  Orientalism.  But  can  it  be  doubtful  which  of  the 
two  civilisations  is  the  higher,  both  materially  and  intellectually  ? 
And  does  not  the  whole  experience  of  the  last  three  hundred  years 
go  to  prove  that  no  Oriental  state  which  retains  distinctively 
Oriental  institutions  can  hope  to  keep  its  territory  free  from 
Western  aggression  ?  What  of  India  ?  What  even  of  China  ? 
And  what  was  Commodore  Perry's  visit  but  a  threat  to  the 
effect  that  if  Japan  chose  to  remain  Oriental,  she  should  not  be 
allowed  to  remain  her  own  mistress  ?  From  the  moment  when 
the  intelligent  Samurai  of  the   leading   Daimiates   realised  that  the 


238  History  and  Mythology. 

Europeanisation  of  the  country  was  a  question  of  life  and  death, 
they  (for  to  this  day  the  government  has  continued  practically 
in  their  hands)  have  never  ceased  carrying  on  the  work  of  reform 
and  progress. 

The  first  and  greatest  step  was  when  the  Daimyos  themselves 
came  forward  to  surrender  their  estates  and  privileges, — when,  in 
fact,  the  Japanese  feudal  system  ended  appropriately  by  commit- 
ting harakiri.  A  centralised  bureaucracy  was  set  up  on  its  ruins 
(1871).  At  the  same  time  all  social  disabilities  were  removed, 
Buddhism  was  disestablished,  an  Imperial  mint  opened,  and  posts 
and  telegraphs — followed  next  year  by  railways — were  introduced. 
In  1873  vaccination,  the  European  calendar,  and  European  dress 
for  officials  were  adopted,  and  the  persecution  of  Christians  was 
stopped.  At  the  same  time  photography,  meat  eating,  and  other 
"  Europeanisms  "  came  pell-mell  into  vogue,  not  without  official 
encouragement ;  and  an  edict  was  issued  against  wearing  the 
queue.  Steamship  companies  were  established  (1875-1885),  tor- 
ture was  abolished,  an  immense  financial  reform  was  effected  by 
the  commutation  of  the  Samurai's  pensions  (1876),  a  Bourse  and 
Chamber  of  Commerce  were  inaugurated  at  Tokyo  (1878),  new 
codes,  inspired  by  the  Code  Napoleon,  began  to  be  published 
(1880),  a  Supreme  Court  of  Justice  was  instituted  (1883),  and 
the  English  language  was  introduced  into  the  curriculum  of  the 
common  schools  (1884).  Most  notable,  next  to  1873,  were 
1885-7,  the  years  of  the  great  "foreign  fever,"  when  Japanese 
society  was  literally  submerged  in  a  flood  of  European  influence, 
such  things  as  foreign  dress  for  ladies,  dancing,  athletics,  card- 
playing,  etc.,  etc.,  coming  in  with  a  rush,  while  what  is  still 
remembered  as  the  O-j'is/im,  or  "  Great  Earthquake,"  shook  the 
political  world.  Then  were  administrative  methods  reformed,  the 
hitherto  excessive  number  of  officials  reduced,  and  new  men, 
such  as  Ito  and  Inoue — names  still  the  most  famous  in  the  land — 
assumed  the  highest  posts. 

Meantime,  this  energetic  government  had  put  down  no  less 
than  three  provincial   risings, — the   Higo  Rebellion  of  1876,  the 


History  and  Mythology.  239 

far  more  dangerous  Satstttha  Rebellion  of  1877,  headed  by  the 
ex-loyalist  leader  Saigo  Takamori,  who  had  taken  umbrage  at 
the  ultra-European  leanings  of  his  colleagues,  and  the  Saitama 
insurrection  of  1884.  Radical  discontent,  too,  had  been  kept  in 
check  by  stringent  regulations  concerning  the  press  and  public 
meetings,  and  by  the  "  Peace  Preservation  Act  "  which  banished 
numerous  agitators  and  suspects  from  the  capital  ;  and  foreign 
relations  with  the  neighbouring  Asiatic  states  had  been  conducted 
with  vigour,  the  Formosan  pirates  having  been  chastised  by  an 
armed  Japanese  force  in  1874,  and  Luchu  annexed  by  diplomatic 
means  in  1879.  During  these  years  of  breathless  activity, 
Europeanisation  was  sometimes  pushed  into  finical  details.  For 
instance,  our  dreary  Philistine  institution  of  exhibitions  was 
swallowed  at  a  gulp, — yards  of  tape,  cakes  of  soap,  etc.,  all 
complete,  and  brand-new  orders  of  knighthood  (1875)  and 
aristocracy  (1884)  were  created, — sickly  plants  surely,  which,  in 
this  age,  may  vegetate  but  cannot  flourish.  Such  vagaries  not 
unnaturally  led  many  grave  judges  to  shake  their  heads,  especially 
abroad,  where  perhaps  even  to  this  day  few  thoroughly  appreciate 
the  fact  that  the  Japanese  of  the  old  regime  were  no  mere 
barbarians,  but  a  community  as  highly  cultured  as  it  was  in- 
telligent,— a  community  moralised,  humanised  in  the  simple  but 
wholesome  school  of  the  Chinese  sages,  knit  together  by  the 
closest  political  and  social  bonds,  and  even  to  some  slight  extent 
penetrated  by,  or  at  least  prepared  for,  European  ideas  by  the 
Dutch  influence  emanating  from  Nagasaki,  which  was  none  the 
less  real  because  it  trickled  underground. 

But  to  return.  The  failure,  in  1887,  of  long-protracted  negotia- 
tions for  treaty  revision  made  of  that  year  a  turning-point  in 
modern  Japanese  history.  A  strong  reaction  set  in  against 
foreigners  and  their  ways,  leading  occasionally  to  murderous 
attacks  on  foreign  residents  and  even  to  one  on  the  present 
•Czar  of  Russia,  who  happened,  as  Czarewitch,  to  be  visiting  Japan 
in  1 89 1.  Notwithstanding  reaction,  however,  a  long-promised 
Constitution,   modelled    to  some  extent  on  that   of  Prussia,  -was 


240  History  and  Mythology. 

granted  in  1889.  Unfortunately  it  failed  from  the  very  beginning 
to  work  smoothly,  and  the  average  life  of  ministries  has  been  only 
about  twelve  months.  Summary  suspension,  following  on  violent 
altercations,  has  come  to  be  looked  forward  to  as  the  most  likely 
fate  of  the  yearly  session.  Meanwhile  the  gradual  development 
of  divers  political  parties  in  the  state  has  helped  to  induce 
considerable  exacerbation  of  feeling,  and  the  spread  of  bribery 
and  corruption  has  tended  to  lower  the  standard  of  public  life. 
Besides  the  promulgation,  from  time  to  time,  of  the  new  codes 
(see  Article  on  Law),  the  most  important  administrative  events  of 
the  last  few  years  have  been  the  promulgation  of  the  Local 
Self-Government  Act  in  1888,  the  granting  of  bounties  for  naviga- 
tion and  shipbuilding  in  1896,  and  the  adoption  of  the  gold 
standard  in  1897.  In  international  politics,  the  revision  of  the 
treaties  with  the  various  great  powers  calls  for  prominent  notice. 
That  with  England  was  concluded  first,  in  August,  1894  ;  that 
with  the  United  States  a  few  months  later.  Great  patriotic  satisfac- 
tion was  felt  when,  in  1899,  these  new  treaties  came  into  force, 
bringing  all  resident  foreigners  within  the  scope  of  Japanese  law. 
At  the  same  time  the  whole  country  was  thrown  open  to  them 
for  trade  and  residence,  a  change  which  must  more  and  more 
tend  to  Europeanise  even  the  remoter  rural  districts.  Moreover, 
despite  what  has  just  been  said  about  the  imperfect  working  of 
the  constitutional  machine,  the  nation  is  gradually  developing 
a  true  political  instinct.  Though  Oriental  by  geographical  position 
and  sturdily  national  in  sentiment,  it  has  become  Western  in  its 
aims  and  methods. 

War  has  been  an  all-important  factor  during  the  last  decade, — 
all-important,  because  military  successes  have  raised  Japan  to  the 
rank  of  a  great  power.  So  long  as  her  improvements  were 
economic,  administrative,  scientific,  and  humanitarian  merely, 
Europe  looked  on  patronisingly,  as  at  the  college  exercises  of  a 
clever,  forward  lad.  But  when  this  same  lad  showed  himself 
to  be  a  thorough  man  of  war,  Europe's  tone  began  to  change. 

There  have  been    three  wars   during  the  last  ten   years.     The 


History  and  Mythology.  241 

first,  which  took  place  in  1894-5,  was  waged  against  China  to 
settle  a  long-standing  dispute  between  the  two  empires  about 
Korea.  In  it  Japan  demonstrated  (what  Europe  should  have 
discovered  long  ago)  that  the  supposed  political  might  of  the 
Chinese  empire  was  but  a  bubble  waiting  to  be  pricked.  Within 
a  year  of  the  declaration  of  hostilities,  China  was  forced  to  cede 
to  Japan  the  peninsula  of  Liao-tung,  besides  paying  a  heavy 
indemnity.  But  European  respect  could  not  be  gained  all  at 
once.  Russia,  which  was  then  counted  as  irresistibly  strong,  wanted 
Liao-tung  for  herself;  so  she  issued  a  summons  to  her  humble 
follower  France,  and  also  to  the  Court  of  Berlin  which  was 
bound  to  that  of  St.  Petersburg  by  ties  of  hereditary  friendship. 
The  three  together  forbade  the  cession  of  any  territory  on  the 
Chinese  mainland  ;  and  Japan,  unprepared  to  face  such  a 
coalition,  had  to  content  herself  with  the  island  of  Formosa.  Her 
mortification  was  great,  rejoicings  over  the  victory  gained  were 
abandoned ;  particularly  bitter  was  the  disillusionment  caused 
by  Germany's  having  joined  this  unholy  alliance, — Germany, 
whom  official  Japan  had  ever  admired  and  striven  to  imitate,  and 
whose  hostile  interference  came  as  a  bolt  from  the  blue.* 

The  second  military  expedition  of  the  present  reign  took  place 
in  1900.  When  the  world  looked  on  aghast  at  the  spectacle  of 
a  handful  of  foreigners  in  Peking  defending  themselves  against 
overwhelming  odds,  the  Japanese  contingent  of  the  allied  army 
was  the  first  to  bring  rescue. 

One  incidental  result  of  such  close  contact  with  European 
diplomacy  and  with  European  soldiers  was  to  diminish  the  respect 
of  the  Japanese  for  Europe.  They  discovered  that  their  revered 
Western  instructor  in  science  and  the  practical  arts  was  no  better 
morally  than  themselves, — less  good,  indeed  ;  that  his  unctuous 
phrases  and  laboured  circumlocutions  were  a  mere  veil  for  vulgar 
greed.     At  the  same  time  it  began  to  be  suspected  that  as  soldiers, 

*  The  "true  inwardness  "  of  Germany's  interference  on  behalf  of  the  inviolabilityof 
Chinese  territory  was  revealed  two  years  later  (1897)  by  her  seizure  of  the  neighbouring 
district  of  Kiao-chonf. 


242  History  and  Mythology. 

too,  the  Westerners  might  be  no  braver  than  the  Japanese, — 
less  brave  perhaps.  When  therefore,  in  1904,  Russian  aggression 
in  Manchuria  and  Korea  had  become  a  standing  menace  to 
Japanese  independence,  and  repeated  protests  proved  unavailing, 
Japan  silently  and  swiftly  rushed  on  her  gigantic  foe,  with  the 
result,  almost  incredible  to  European  self-sufficiency,  that  Russia's 
navy  was  practically  annihilated  in  little  more  than  two  months. 
The  conflict  is  still  in  progress  on  land.  WThatever  may  be  its 
final  issue,  one  fact  has  deeply  impressed  all  those  who,  by  long 
residence  among  the  Japanese  and  familiarity  with  their  language, 
have  been  able  to  watch  the  attitude  of  all  classes  during  the 
various  wars  and  other  changes  here  briefly  sketched  : — it  is  the 
fundamental  sturdiness  and  healthiness  of  the  national  character. 
The  assumed  intellectual  inferiority  of  Far-Eastern  nations — at 
least  of  this  Far-Eastern  nation — to  Europeans  has  been  disproved. 
Disproved,  likewise,  is  the  supposed  moral  inferiority  of  "  heathen  " 
nations — at  least  of  this  "  heathen  "  nation — to  Christians.  For 
no  one  fully  cognisant  of  the  events  of  the  last  forty  years  can 
allege  that  any  Christian  European  nation  could  have  shown 
itself  readier  to  acknowledge  its  former  errors,  more  teachable 
in  all  the  arts  of  civilisation,  franker  and  more  moderate  in 
diplomacy,  more  chivalrous  and  humane  in  war.  If  there  be 
any  "  Yellow  Peril,"  it  must  surely  consist  in  Europe's  own  good 
qualities  being  surpassed  by  a  higher  grade  of  those  same  qualities 
in  her  new  rivals.  Such  are  the  astonishing  results  of  forty  years 
of  hard  work  on  the  part  of  a  whole  nation,  which  saw  itself  in  a 
bad  way,  and  resolutely  determined  to  mend  it. 


It  is  not  possible  to  conclude  this  sketch  of  Japanese  history 
with  the  usual  formula,  "  Books  recommended," — for  the  reason 
that  there  are  no  general  histories  of  Japan  to  recommend.  The 
chapters  devoted   to  history   in  the  works  of  Griffis,  Rein,  David 


History  and  Mythology.  243 

Murray,  etc.,  hold,  it  is  true,  a  respectable  position  as  embodying 
the  usual  traditional  account  of  the  subject.  Brinkley,  too,  in 
his  Japan  and  China,  lets  in  welcome  light  on  one  highly 
important  side  of  the  subject,  namely,  manners  and  customs  and 
the  growth  of  various  arts.  But  in  the  domain  of  history  proper 
his  loose  method,  his  failure  to  quote  original  authorities,  and 
above  all  his  lack  of  the  critical  faculty  render  him  an  unsafe 
guide,  except  for  the  events  of  the  last  forty  years  whose  gradual 
unfolding  he  has  personally  watched.  Thus,  a  trustworthy  history 
of  Japan  remains  to  be  written, — a  work  which  should  do  for 
every  century  what  Mr.  Aston  has  done  for  the  earliest  centuries 
only.*  and  Mr.  Murdoch  for  the  single  century  from  1542  to 
165 1.  Here  more  than  anywhere  else  is  it  necessary  to  listen 
at  backdoors,  to  peep  through  conventional  fences,  and  to  sift 
native  evidence  by  the  light  of  foreign  testimony.  We  should 
know  next  to  nothing  of  what  may  be  termed  the  Catholic  episode 
of  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries,  had  we  access  to  none 
but  the  official  Japanese  sources.  How  can  we  trust  those  same 
sources  when  they  deal  with  times  yet  more  remote  ?  There 
seems  little  doubt  that  the  ruling  powers  at  any  given  time 
manipulated  both  the  more  ancient  records  and  the  records  of 
their  own  age,  in  order  to  suit  their  own  private  ends.  Some- 
times, indeed,  the  process  may  have  been  almost  unconscious. 
The  modern  Japanese  themselves  are  beginning  to  awake  to 
these  considerations,  so  far  as  the  centuries  immediately  preceding 
their  own  are  concerned.  Dr.  Shigeno  An-eki,  for  instance,  the 
greatest  living  authority  on  Japanese  history,  has  undertaken  to 
prove  how  certain  historical  episodes  were  "  cooked  "  under  the 
Tokugawa  dynasty  of  Shoguns.     But   the  process  of  "  cooking  " 


*  See  his  essay  entitled  Early  Japanese  History,  printed  in  Vol.  XVI.  Part  I.  of  the 
"Asiatic  Transactions,"  and  his  elaborately  annotated  translation  of  the  "  Nihongi,"1 
published  by  tbe  Japan  Society  in  1896.  The  former  approaches  the  subject  chiefly  from 
the  Chinese,  the  latter  from  the  Japanese,  side.  Murdoch's  work  is  entitled  A  History  of 
Japan  from  A.D.  ij '42  down  to  the  Present  Time,  but  on.ly  Vol.  I.,  bringing  the  story 
down  to  1651,  has  yet  appeared.     Compare  our  notice  of  this  excellent  work  on  p.  67. 


244  History  and  Mythology. 

still  persists,  as  may  be  seen  by  any  critical  pair  of  eyes  that  will 
take  the  trouble  to  examine  contemporary  official  documents,  and 
more  especially  the  text-books  published  for  use  in  the  schools. 
Quite  interesting  is  the  naivete  of  the  effort  so  to  trim  and  pare 
the  records  of  the  past  as  to  make  it  appear  that  the  spirit  now 
ruling  the  nation  has  been,  to  use  a  consecrated  phrase,  "  unbroken 
for  ages  eternal."' 

A  little  reflection  will  show  that  such  manipulations  of  history 
are  likely  to  be  the  rule  rather  than  the  exception  in  Oriental 
countries.  The  love  of  truth  for  truth's  sake  is  not  a  general 
human  characteristic,  but  one  of  the  exceptional  traits  of  the 
Modern  European  mind,  developed  slowly  by  many  causes,  chiefly 
by  those  habits  of  accuracy  which  physical  science  does  so  much 
to  foster.  The  concern  of  ancient  peoples  and  of  Oriental  peoples 
has  always  been,  not  so  much  truth  as  edification.  Outside 
Europe  and  her  colonies  it  is  easy  to  manipulate  records,  because 
such  manipulation  shocks  no  one  deeply,  because  the  people 
are  told  nothing  about  the  matter,  and  because,  even  if  they 
were  told,  they  have  neither  the  means  nor  the  inclination  to  be 
critical. 

Meanwhile,  in  her  attitude  towards  historical  studies,  as  in  all 
else,  Japan  is  undergoing  a  metamorphosis.  Her  literati  have 
been  fired  with  the  desire  to  emulate  Europe  the  critical  and 
accurate,  and  government  has  laudably,  if  somewhat  spasmodically, 
encouraged  their  efforts,  by  occasionally  devoting  a  small  yearly 
sum  to  the  defrayal  of  expenses.  An  enormous  amount  of 
historical  material  has  been  unearthed  from  the  archives  of  the 
ex-Daimy5s,  from  temple  records,  and  other  miscellaneous  sources, 
dealing  not  with  state  occurrences  only,  but  with  trade,  industry, 
literature,  manners  and  customs,  everything  in  short  that  goes  to 
make  up  the  life  of  a  nation.  This  text,  arranged  chronologically 
with  widely  varied  illustrations,  is  slowly  passing  through  the 
press,  and  is  expected  to  fill  300  volumes  of  1,000  pages  each, 
while  reproductions  (some  of  them  in  facsimile)  of  over  100,000 
documents  will   fill   200  volumes  more  of  600  pages  each.      191 5 


Incense  Parties.  245 

has  been  announced  as  the  probable  date  of  completion.  Such  is 
the  Dai  Nihon  Shityo,  or  "  Materials  for  the  History  of  Great 
Japan,' '  with  its  sequel  the  Dai  Nihon  Kobunsho,  or  "  Ancient 
Documents  of  Great  Japan," — works  evidently  destined  to  rank 
among  those  which  are  "  more  admired  than  read,"  but  which 
perhaps  some  future  Japanese  historian,  without  "  cooking,"  in 
the  bad  sense  of  the  term,  will  judiciously  boil  down  into 
something  more  palatable  to  the  ordinary  reader.  (See  also  Article 
on  Treaties.) 

Incense  Parties.  There  is  an  elaborate  ceremonial  called 
kiki-kd,  or  "  incense-sniffing/'  that  has  been  a  favourite  ever  since 
A.D.  1500,  and  still  counts  its  votaries  among  esthetically  minded 
persons.  The  gist  of  it  is  this  : — The  host  produces,  from  among 
a  score  of  different  kinds  of  incense,  five  kinds,  to  each  of  which 
he  affixes  at  pleasure  a  new  name  founded  on  some  literary 
allusion,  and  each  name  receives  a  number.  The  various  kinds 
are  then  burnt  in  irregular  order,  sometimes  in  combinations  of 
two  or  three  kinds,  and  the  guests  have  to  write  down  the 
corresponding  numbers  on  slips  of  paper  by  means  of  certain 
signs  symbolical  of  the  chapters  in  a  celebrated  classical  romance 
called  Genji  Mono-galari.  He  who  guesses  best  wins  a  prize. 
When  the  nose  gets  jaded  by  much  smelling,  it  is  restored  to 
normal  discrimination  by  means  of  vinegar. 

All  this  will  sound  to  the  foreign  reader  like  an  innocent,  not 
to  say  insipid,  little  jeu  de  societe,  such  as  might  suggest  itself  to 
a  party  of  school-girls.  But  remember  that  Old  Japan  was  in 
its  childhood, — its  second  childhood.  The  art,  the  science,  the 
mystery  of  iucense-snimng  was  practised  by  priests,  Daimyos, 
and  other  reverend  seigniors.  The  incense-burners  and  other 
utensils  employed  were  rare  works  of  art,  the  meetings  were 
conducted  with  grave  etiquette,  serious  treatises  have  been  written 
on  the  subject, — in  a  word,  incense-sniffing,  coming  next  to  the 
tea  ceremonies  in  the  estimation  of  men  of  taste,  was  a  pastime 
at   once   erudite    and    aristocratic,    and    one   which    no   Japanese 


246  Indian  Influence. 

would  ever  have  thought  of  joking  about.  Nor  need  a  European 
joke  about  it.  Have  we  not  rather  cause  for  wonder,  perplexity, 
almost  awe,  in  the  spectacle  of  a  nation's  intellect  going  off  on 
such  devious  tracks  as  this  incense-sniffing  and  the  still  more 
intricate  tea  ceremonies,  and  on  bouquets  arranged  philosophically, 
and  gardens  representing  the  cardinal  virtues  ?  Such  strict  rules, 
such  grave  faces,  such  endless  terminologies,  so  much  ado  about 
nothing  ! 

This  article,  read  together  with  the  Articles  on  Esotericism 
and  the  Tea  Ceremonies  and  with  portions  of  those  on  Flowers 
and  Gardens,  will  afford  a  glimpse  into  a  singular  phase  of  the 
Oriental  character, — its  proneness  to  dwell  on  subjects  simply 
because  they  are  old  and  mysterious,  its  love  of  elaborately 
conceived  methods  of  killing  time. 

Books    recommended.      Lafcadio    Heartvs     In    Ghostly    Japan,   Article    entitled 
Incense. — Brinkley's  Japan  and  China,  Vol.  III.  p.  i  et  seq. 

Indian  Influence  on  Japan  is  a  vast  and  somewhat  obscure 
subject,  which  the  present  writer  does  not  feel  himself  fitted  to 
cope  with  : — he  merely  suggests  it  in  the  hope  that  some  better- 
equipped  scholar  will  take  it  up  and  do  it  justice.  In  a  sense 
Japan  may  be  said  to  owe  everything  to  India ;  for  from  India 
came  Buddhism,  and  Buddhism  brought  civilisation, — Chinese 
civilisation  ;  but  then  China  had  been  far  more  deeply  tinged 
with  the  Indian  dye  than  is  generally  admitted  even  by  the 
Chinese  themselves.  The  Japanese,  while  knowing,  of  course  ?  full 
well  that  Buddhism  is  Indian,  not  only  habitually  underrate  the 
influence  of  Buddhism  in  great  matters  ;  they  have  no  adequate 
notion  of  the  way  in  which  smaller  details  of  their  lives  and 
thoughts  have  been  moulded  by  it.  They  do  not  realise,  for 
instance,  that  the  elderly  man  or  woman  who  becomes,  as  they 
say,  inkyo,  that  is,  hands  over  the  care  of  the  household  to  the 
next  generation,  and  amuses  him  or  herself  by  going  to  the 
theatre  or  visiting  friends, — they  do  not  realise  that  this  cheery 
and  eminently  practical  old  individual  is  the  lineal  representative 
of  the  deeply   religious   Brahman  householder,  who,  at  a  certain 


Indian  Influence.  247 

age, — his  worldly  duties  performed, — retired  to  the  solitude  of 
the  forest,  there  to  ponder  on  the  vanity  of  all  phenomena,  and 
attain  to  the  absorption  of  self  in  the  world-soul  through  profound 
metaphysical  meditation.  Or  take  the  complications  treated  of  in 
our  Article  on  Names  : — the  "  true  name,"  which  is  kept  secret, 
is  an  Indian  heritage.  The  fire-drill  for  producing  the  sacred 
fire  at  the  great  Shinto  shrines  of  Ise  and  Izumo  seems  to  be 
Indian ;  the  elaboration  of  ancestor- worship  seems  to  be  Indian  ; 
all  philological  research  in  the  Far-East  is  certainly  of  Indian 
origin,  even  to  the  arranging  of  the  Japanese  syllabaries  in  their 
familiar  order.  Not  only  can  some  of  the  current  fairy-tales  be 
traced  to  stories  told  in  the  Buddhist  sutras,  but  so  can  some  of 
the  legends  of  the  Shinto  religion,  notwithstanding  the  claim 
confidently  put  forward,  and  too  easily  accepted  by  European 
writers,  to  the  effect  that  everything  Shinto  is  purely  aboriginal. 
The  very  language  has  been  tinctured,  many  learned  words  being 
of  Indian  derivation,  and  even  a  few  common  ones,  such  as 
aba/a,  "  pock-marks  ;  "  aka,  "  water  baled  out  of  a  boat ;  "  baka* 
11  fool ;  "  dabi,  "  cremation  ;  "  danna,  "  master,"  originally  "  parish- 
ioner "  (lit.  "  giver,"  that  is,  "  contributor  to  a  temple  "  )  ;  hachi 
"  bowl ;  "  kawara,  "  tile  ;  "  sendan  "  sandal-wood  "  (we  English 
having  borrowed  the  same  Indian  word  for  this  Indian  thing)  ; 
sora,  "  the  sky  ;  " — to  say  nothing  of  such  words  connected  with 
religion  as  garan,  "  temple  ;  "  shamon,  "  priest  "  (English  shaman  is 
the  same  word) ;  kesa,  "  vestment ;  "  shari,  "  relic,  "  and  numerous 
others.  Indian  of  course  is  all  Buddhist  religious  architecture 
and  sculpture ;  Indian  is  the  use  of  tea  now  so  characteristic  of 
China  and  Japan ;  India  has  dictated  the  national  diet,  fostering 
rice-culture  and  discrediting  the  use  of  flesh,  which  seems  to 
have  been  a  staple  article  of  Japanese  food  in  pre-Buddhistic 
days. 

*  Popularly  derived  from  ba,  «'  horse,"  and  (s/u')kat  "  stag,"  because  of  a  story  related 
of  an  ancient  Chinese  emperor  who  was  such  a  ninny  that,  when  told  by  his  favourite 
that  a  stag  was  a  horse,  he  actually  believed  him.  But  philologists  do  not  accept  this 
ingenious  etymology. 


248  Industrialism. 

We  jot  down  the  above  just  as  they  occur  to  us.  The  idea 
suggested  will  bear  elaboration,  the  steps  of  the  process  being  in 
each  case  these  : — first  from  India  to  China,  second  from  China 
to  Korea,  third  from  Korea  to  Japan  ;  or  else  from  China  to 
Japan  direct,  without  Korean  intervention,  but  this  less  often 
except  in  comparatively  recent  times. 

Industrialism.  About  the  year  1880,  industrialism  leapt  into 
existence  in  this  land  which,  under  the  old  regime,  had  been 
divided  between  an  exclusive  aristocracy  and  a  humble  peasantry, 
both  extremely  simple  in  their  tastes.  Now  almost  every  town 
has  its  sheaf  of  smoke-stacks,  five  thousand  breaking  the  sky-line 
in  Osaka  and  its  suburbs  alone.  But  why  attempt  to  give  statistics 
which  a  few  weeks  will  turn  into  ancient  history  ?  Not  a  month 
passes  without  seeing  new  manufactories  of  cement,  carpets,  soap, 
glass,  umbrellas,  hats,  matches,  watches,  bicycles,  smelting-works, 
electrical  works,  steel  foundries,  machine-shops  of  every  sort.  Nor 
is  everything  left  to  private  enterprise  ;  government  steps  in  with 
liberal  bounties.  The  silk  industry,  once  confined  to  certain 
narrow  districts,  is  fast  spreading  over  the  entire  centre  and  south. 
Formerly  the  Nakasendo  was  an  old-world  trail  among  the 
mountains.  The  last  time  we  travelled  along  the  new,  finely 
graded  carriage  road,  we  were  wakened  every  morning  by  the 
scream  of  the  factory  whistle.  Journeying  on  and  reaching  the 
town  of  Kofu,  we  found  its  silk  filatures  to  be  now  its  most 
noteworthy  sight,  troops  of  girls  coming  in  at  five  every  morning 
and  working  straight  on  till  eight  at  night, — fifteen  hours  at  a 
stretch  ! 

The  cloud  of  discontent  that  has  darkened  industrialism  in  the 
West  already  begins  to  obscure  the  Japanese  sky.  The  "  rights 
of  labour"  are  asserting  themselves.  We  hear  of  frequent  strikes, 
than  which  nothing  can  be  imagined  further  from  the  whole 
mental  attitude  of  the  working  class  of  even  seventeen  years  ago. 
For  them,  as  for  subjects  generally,  the  watchword  was,  not  rights, 
but  duties.     Now  quite  a  new  spirit  is  abroad.     The  spread  of  this 


Japan.  249 

spirit,  the  sudden  rise  in  prices  and  consequently  in  wages  since 
the  China  war  of  1894-5,  and  the  adoption  of  a  gold  standard 
have  affected  Japanese  industrialism  unfavourably.  Neither  has 
Japanese  ambition  been  content  with  those  fields  of  industrial 
activity,  where  natural  advantages  counterbalanced  the  lack  of 
experience,  organisation,  and  capital.  It  is  probably  true  also 
that  Japanese  labour  and  Far-Eastern  labour  generally  is  less 
cheap  in  the  long  run  than  appears  at  first  sight ;  the  result  of 
the  mechanic's  daily  toil  has  been  found  inferior  in  quality,  and 
especially  in  quantity,  to  that  of  his  Western  rival.  Doubtless, 
Japan  is  passing  from  the  agricultural  into  the  industrial  stage,  and 
she  may  look  forward  to  a  bright  future,  with  China's  huge  market 
at  her  gates.  Nevertheless,  so  far  as  our  own  mills  and  factories 
are  concerned,  we  see  little  reason  for  alarm  at  the  prospect  of 
competition  in  this  quarter. 

Two  or  three  of  the  characteristically  Japanese  industries,  or 
rather  arts — for  arts  they  were— such  as  lacquer  and  wood-engrav- 
ing, have  been  treated  separately  in  this  book.  But  to  walk 
amidst  the  din  of  sledge-hammers  and  the  smoke  of  factory 
chimneys  is  not  to  our  taste,  neither  have  we  the  talent  to  discourse 
of  the  two  thousand  three  hundred  odd  Japanese  banks,  or  of  the 
brand-new  insurance  companies,  or  of  the  joint-stock  companies 
which,  after  all,  are  not  things  Japanese,  but  things  European 
recently  transplanted. 

Book  recommended.     The  British    Consular   Trade  Reports. 

Japan.  Our  word  "Japan,"  and  the  Japanese  Nikon  ox  Nippon, 
are  alike  corruptions  of  Jih-pen,  the  Chinese  pronunciation  of  the 
characters  "Q  jrjpi  literally"  "  sun-origin,"  that  is,  "  the  place  the 
sun  comes  from," — a  name  given  to  Japan  by  the  Chinese  on 
account  of  the  position  of  the  archipelago  to  the  east  of  their 
own  country.  Marco  Polo's  Zipangu  and  the  poets'  Cipango  are 
from  the  same  Chinese  compound,  with  the  addition  of  the  word 
kiio  (Jap.  koku),  g*)  which  means  "  country." 

The  name  Nihon  ( ""  Japan"  )  seems  to  have  been  first   official ly 


250  Japanese  People. 

employed  by  the  Japanese  government  in  A.D.  670.  Before  that 
time,  the  usual  native  designation  of  the  country  was  Yamato, 
properly  the  name  of  one  of  the  central  provinces.  Yamalo  and 
O-mi-kuni,  that  is,  "  the  Great  August  Country,"  are  the  names 
still  preferred  in  poetry  and  belles-lettres.  Japan  has  other  ancient 
names,  some  of  which  are  of  learned  length  and  thundering 
sound,  for  instance,  Toyo-ashi-wara-?io-chi-aki-no-naga-i-ho-aki-no- 
mizu-ho  no-kuni,  that  is,  "  the-Luxuriant-Reed-Plains-the-Land-of- 
Fresh-Rice-Ears-of-a-Thousand-Autumns-of-  Long-  Five-Hundred- 
Autumns."  But  we  shall  not  detain  the  reader  with  an  enumeration 
of  them.  Any  further  curiosity  on  this  head  may  be  satisfied  by 
consulting  the  pages  of  the  "  Kojiki"  (see  "Asiatic  Transactions," 
Vol.  X.,  Supplement). 

Japanese  People  (Characteristics  of  the).  Any  account 
of  the  characteristics  of  a  people  must  deal  with  two  main  points, 
namely,  physical  characteristics  and  mental  characteristics.  We 
will  first  say  a  few  words  about  the  physical  characteristics, 
referring  those  who  desire  exhaustive  information  to  Dr.  Baelz's 
admirable  monograph  entitled  Die  Korperlichen  Eigenschaflen  der 
Japaner,  printed  in  Parts  28  and  32  of  the  "German  Asiatic 
Transactions." 

I.  Physical  Characteristics.  As  stated  in  the  Article  entitled 
Race,  the  Japanese  are  Mongols,  that  is,  they  are  distinguished 
by  a  yellowish  skin,  straight  black  hair,  scanty  beard,  almost  total 
absence  of  hair  on  the  arms,  legs,  and  chest,  broadish  prominent 
cheek-bones,  and  more  or  less  obliquely  set  eyes.  These,  with 
the  other  characteristics  to  be  mentioned  presently,  are  common 
both  to  the  more  slenderly  built,  oval-faced  aristocracy,  and  to 
pudding-faced  Gombei,  the  "  Hodge "  of  Japanese  Arcadia. 
Compared  with  people  of  European  race,  the  average  Japanese 
has  a  long  body  and  short  legs,  a  large  skull  with  a  tendency 
to  prognathism  (projecting  jaws),  a  flat  nose,  coarse  hair,  scanty 
eye-lashes,  puffy  eyelids,  a  sallow  complexion,  and  a  low  stature. 
The  average  stature  of  Japanese  men  is  about  the  same  as  the 


Japanese  People.  251 

average  stature  of  European  women.  The  women  are  propor- 
tionately smaller.  The  lower  classes  are  mostly  strong,  with 
well-developed  arms,  legs,  and  chests.  The  upper  classes  are 
too  often  weakly. 

The  above  description  will  perhaps  not  be  considered  nattering. 
But  it  is  not  ours  ;  it  is  the  doctors'.  Then,  too,  ideals  of  beauty 
differ  from  land  to  land.  We  Anglo-Saxons  consider  ourselves  a 
handsome  race.  But  what  are  we  still,  in  the  eyes  of  the  majority 
of  the  Japanese  people,  but  a  set  of  big,  red,  hairy  barbarians  with 
green  eyes  ? 

The  Japanese  women  are,  on  the  whole,  better-looking  than  the 
men,  and  have,  besides,  pretty  manners  and  charming  voices.* 
Village  beauties  are  rare,  most  girls  of  the  lower  class  with  any 
pretentions  to  good  looks  being,  as  it  would  seem,  sent  out  to 
service  at  tea-houses  in  the  towns,  or  else  early  obtaining  husbands. 
Japanese  children,  with  their  dainty  little  ways  and  old-fashioned 
appearance,  always  insinuate  themselves  into  the  affections  of 
foreign  visitors.  Old  and  young  alike  are  remarkable  for  quietness 
of  demeanour.  The  gesticulations  of  a  southern  European  fill 
them  with  amazement,  not  to  say  contempt,  and  fidgeting  of  every 
kind  is  foreign  to  their  nature. 

The  Japanese  age  earlier  than  we  do.  It  has  also  been  asserted 
that  they  are  less  long-lived  ;  but  this  is  doubtful.  If  statistics 
may  be  trusted,  the  number  of  octogenarians,  nonagenarians,  and 
even  centenarians  is  fairly  high.  In  Japan,  as  in  other  countries, 
the  number  of  very  old  women  considerably  exceeds  that  of  the 
very  old  men.  The  diseases  which  make  most  havoc  are  con- 
sumption, disease  of  the  digestive  organs,  and  the  peculiar 
affection  called  kakke,  of  which  an  account  will  be  found  in  a 
separate  article.      The  Japanese   have  less  highly   strung   nerves 


*  For  a  detailed  analysis  of  the  Japanese  standard  of  female  beauty,  see  Miss  Bacon's 
Japanese  Girls  and  Women,  pp.  58 — 60,  where  also  the  true  remark  is  made  that 
foreigners  long  resident  in  Japan  find  their  standard  gradually  change,  "  and  see,  to 
their  own  surprise,  that  their  countrywomen  look  ungainly,  fierce,  aggressive,  and 
awkward  among  the  small,  mild,  shrinking,  and  graceful  Japanese  ladies." 


252  Japanese  People. 

than  we  Europeans,  Hence  they  endure  pain  more  calmly,  and 
meet  death  with  comparative  indifference.* 

II.  Mental  Characteristics.  The  tape-line,  the  weighing- 
machine,  the  craniometer,  and  the  hospital  returns  give  means  of 
ascertaining  a  nation's  physical  characteristics  ?  which  almost  any 
one  can  apply  and  which  none  may  dispute.  Far  different  is  it 
when  we  try  to  gauge  the  phenomena  of  mind.  Does  a  new- 
comer venture  on  the  task  ?  He  is  set  down  as  a  sciolist,  a  man 
without  experience — the  one  thing  declared  needful.  Does  an 
old  resident  hold  forth,  expecting  his  experience  to  command 
attention  ?  The  Globe-trotter  jonrnalisticus  from  London,  or  may  be 
the  cultured  Bostonian  literary  critic,  jumps  upon  him,  tells  him 
that  living  too  long  in  one  place  has  given  him  mental  myopia, 
in  other  words  has  rendered  his  judgment  prejudiced  and  worthless. 
The  late  Mr.  Gifford  Palgrave  said,  in  the  present  writer's  hearing, 
that  an  eight  weeks'  residence  was  the  precise  time  qualifying 
an  intelligent  man  to  write  about  Japan.  A  briefer  period  (such 
was  his  ruling)  was  sure  to  produce  superficiality,  while  a  longer 
period  induced  a  wrong  mental  focus.  By  a  curious  coincidence, 
eight  weeks  was  the  exact  space  of  time  during  which  that  brilliant 
conversationalist  and  writer  had  been  in  Japan  when  he  delivered 
himself  of  this  oracle. 

Again,  are  you  in  the  Japanese  service,  and  do  you  praise 
Japan  ?  Then  you  must  be  a  sycophant.  Do  you  find  fault  with 
it  ?  "  Ah  !  don't  you  know  ?"  it  will  be  said,  "  when  they  renew- 
ed his  engagement  the  other  day,  they  cut  his  salary  down  $  50 
a  month."     Worst  of  all  is  it  if  you   are  a  Yokohama  merchant. 

*  We  have  classed  indifference  to  death  among  the  physical  characteristics,  because 
none  can  doubt  that  a  less  sensitive  nervous  system  must  at  least  tend  in  that  direc- 
tion. It  is  possible,  however,  that  opinions  and  beliefs  have  had  some  influence  in  the 
matter.  Most  Japanese  are  either  agnostics  looking  forward  to  no  hereafter,  or  they 
are  Buddhists ;  and  Buddhism  is  a  tolerant,  hopeful  creed,  promising  rest  at  last  to  all, 
even,  though  it  may  have  to  be  purchased  by  the  wicked  at  the  price  of  numerous 
transmigrations.  Christianity,  on  the  other  hand,  with  its  terrible  doctrine  of  final  and 
hopeless  perdition,  may  have  steeped  in  a  still  more  sombre  hue  the'  naturally  excitable 
and  self-questioning  European  mind.  The  Greeks  and  Romans  appear  to  have  faced 
death  with  an  indifference  to  which  few  moderns  can  attain. 


Japanese  People.  253 

Then  you  are  informed  flatly  that  you  are  an  ignoramus,  a  "  dollar- 
grinder/"  and  that,  as  you  never  see  any  Japanese  of  the  better 
class,  but  only  coolies  and  hucksters,  what  you  are  pleased  to 
call  your  opinion  is  a  mere  impertinence  worth  less  than 
nothing. 

All  things  considered,  the  would-be  critic  of  Japanese  mind, 
manners,  and  morals  has  a  thankless  task  before  him.  The 
present  writer  feels  that  he  cannot  hope  to  escape  being  classed  in 
some  one  or  other  of  the  above-named  categories  of  pariahs  not 
fit  to  have  an  opinion  of  their  own.  He  has,  therefore,  decided 
to  express  none  at  all,  but  simply  to  quote  the  opinions  of  others. 
Perhaps  he  may  thus  avoid  blame  and  unpleasantness.  He  has 
chosen  the  opinions  impartially,  or  rather  he  has  not  chosen 
them,  but  taken  them  at  random  from  his  commonplace-book. 
He  has  not,  it  is  true,  thought  fit  to  include  all  or  any  of  the 
absurdities  of  the  casual  passer-by  ; — one  French  count,  for 
instance,  a  stripling  of  twenty,  who  spent  just  three  months  in  the 
country  and  then  wrote  a  book  about  it,  sums  up  his  acquired 
wisdom  in  the  tremendous  assertion,  "  Le  japonais  riesl  pas 
intelligent:'  Of  trash  of  this  kind  there  is  enough  to  fill  many 
volumes.  But  who  would  care  to  wade  through  it  ?  The 
opinions  which  we  quote  will  be  seen  to  be  in  some  cases  judg- 
ments of  the  people,  in  others  judgments  of  the  country.  But  it  is 
not  practicable  to  separate  one  class  from  the  other  : — 

"This  nation  is  the  delight  of  my  soul."  (St.  Francis  Xavier, 
middle  of  sixteenth  century.) 

"The  people  of  this  Hand  of  Iapon  are  good  of  nature,  curteous 
aboue  measure  and  valiant  in  warre  :  their  justice  is  seuerely  execu- 
ted without  any  partialitie  vpon  transgressors  of  the  law.  They  are 
gouerned  in  great  ciuilitie.  I  meane,  not  a  land  better  gouerned 
in  the  world  by  ciuill  policie.  The  people  be  verie  superstitious 
in  their  religion,  and  are  of  diuers  opinions." — This  last  sentence 
does  not  fit  the  present  day.  No  one  now  accuses  the  Japanese 
of  superstitious  religionism.  Our  author  is  again  in  touch  with 
modern    times   when  he  speaks  of  "  the  peopell   veri   subject  to 


254  Japanese  People. 

thear  gouvernours  and  superiores."  (Will  Adams,  early  in  the 
seventeenth  century.) 

"  Bold, heroic, revengeful, desirous    of  fame, 

very    industrious    and    enured    to    hardships, great 

lovers  of  civility   and  good   manners,   and   very  nice  in  keeping 

themselves,   their  cioaths  and   houses,   clean  and  neat As  to 

all  sorts  of  handicrafts,  either  curious  or  useful,  they  are  wanting 
neither  proper  materials,  nor  industry  and  application,  and  so  far 
is  it,  that  they  should  have  any  occasion  to  send  for  masters  from 
abroad,  that  they  rather  exceed  all  other  nations  in  ingenuity  and 
neatness  of  workmanship,  particularly  in  brass,   gold,   silver  and 

copper Now  if  we  proceed  farther  to  consider  the  Japanese, 

with  regard  to  sciences  and  the  embellishments  of  our  mind, 
Philosophy  perhaps  will  be  found  wanting.  The  Japanese  indeed 
are  not  so  far  enemies  to  this  Science,  as  to  banish  the  Country 
those  who  cultivate  it,  but  they  think  it  an  amusement  proper  for 
monasteries,  where  the  monks  leading  an  idle  lazy  life,  have  little 
else  to  trouble  their  heads  about.  However,  this  relates  chiefly 
to  the  speculative  part,  for  as  to  the  moral   part,   they   hold   it  in 

great   esteem,    as   being   of  a   higher   and    divine    origin I 

confess  indeed,  that  they  are  wholly  ignorant  of  musick,  so  far  as 
it  is  a  science  built  upon  certain  precepts  of  harmony.  They  like- 
wise know  nothing  of  mathematicks,  more  especially  of  its  deeper 
and  speculative  parts.  No  body  ever  cultivated  these  sciences 
but  we  Europeans,  nor  did  any  other  nations  endeavour  to 
embellish   the   mind    with   the   clear   light   of  mathematical   and 

demonstrative  reasoning They   profess  a   great  respect  and 

veneration  for  their  Gods,  and  worship  them  in  various  ways  : 
And  I  think  I  may  affirm,  that  in  the  practice  of  virtue,  in 
purity  of  life,  and  outward  devotion,  they  far  out-do  the  Christians  : 
Careful  for  the  Salvation  of  their  Souls,  scrupulous  to  excess  in  the 
expiation  of  their  crimes,  and  extremely  desirous  of  future  happiness. 

Their  Laws  and    Constitutions  are  excellent,  and  strictly 

observed,  severe  penalties  being  put  upon  the  least  transgression 
of  any."     (Engelbert  Kaempfer,  end  of  seventeenth  century.) 


Japanese  People.  255 

Sir  Rutherford  Alcock,  one  of  the  most  acute  writers  on 
Japan,  is  also  one  of  the  most  difficult  to  quote,  as  his  whole 
book,  The  Capital  of  the  Tycoon,  is  one  continued  criticism  of  the 
Japan  of  his  time  (about  i860),  and  one  would  like  to  transcribe 
it  all.     Here  are  a  couple  of  his  witty  sayings  : 

"  (Japan)  is  a  very  paradise  of  babies." — "There  is  a  mistake 
somewhere,  and  the  result  is  that  in  one  of  the  most  beautiful  and 
fertile  countries  in  the  whole  world  the  flowers  have  no  scent,  the 
birds  no  song,*  and  the  fruit  and  vegetables  no  flavour." 

Sir  Rutherford  speaks,  in  his  preface,  of  "  the  incorrigible 
tendency  of  the  Japanese  to  withhold  from  foreigners  or  disguise 
the  truth  on  all  matters  great  and  small."  Yet  he  allows  that  they 
are  "  a  nation  of  thirty  millions  of  as  industrious,  kindly,  and 
well-disposed  people  as  any  in  the  world." — Their  art,  too,  rouses 
his  admiration,  though  he  makes  a  reservation  to  the  effect  that 
there  are  some  departments  in  which  they  have  failed  to  produce 
anything  to  be  named  in  the  same  day  with  the  masterpieces  of 
the  great  artists  of  Europe.  "  Perhaps  in  nothing,"  says  he.  "  are 
the  Japanese  to  be  more  admired  than  for  the  wonderful  genius 
they  display  in  arriving  at  the  greatest  possible  results  with  the 
simplest  means,  and  the  smallest  possible  expenditure  of  time 
and  labour  or  material.  The  tools  by  which  they  produce  their 
finest  works  are  the  simplest,  and  often  the  rudest  that  can  be 
conceived.  Wherever  in  the  fields  or  the  workshops  nature 
supplies  a  force,  the  Japanese  is  sure  to  lay  it  under  contribution, 
and  make  it  do  his  work  with  the  least  expense  to  himself  of 
time,  money,  and  labour.  To  such  a  pitch  of  perfection  is  this 
carried,  that  it  strikes  every  observer  as  one  of  the  moral  charac- 
teristics of  the  race,  indicating  no  mean  degree  of  intellectual 
capacity  and  cultivation." 

*  How  often,  we  wonder,  has  this  strange  error  been  repeated  ?  We  should  like  to 
take  those  who  still  credit  it  out  upon  the  moors  of  almost  any  Japanese  province  in 
springtime,  and  let  them  listen  to  the  carolling  of  the  larks  and  the  nightingales,  or 
into  the  woods  that  re-echo  with  the  note  of  the  cuckoo  and  other  songsters  As  for 
Japanese  flowers  lacking  scent,  what  of  the  fragrant  plum-blossom,  the  cassia-tree,  the 
lilies,  jonquils,  wild  roses,  and  many  more? 


256  Japanese  People. 

"A  brave,  courteous,  light-hearted,  pleasure-loving  people, 
sentimental  rather  than  passionate,  witty  and  humorous,  of  nimble 
apprehension,  but  not  profound  ;  ingenious  and  inventive,  but 
hardly  capable  of  high  intellectual  achievement ;  of  receptive 
minds  endowed  with  a  voracious  appetite  for  knowledge  ;  with  a 
turn  for  neatness  and  elegance  of  expression,  but  seldom  or  never 
rising  to  sublimity." — But  he  adds,  "  The  Japanese  are  never 
contented  with  simple  borrowing.  In  art,  political  institutions, 
and  even  religion,  they  are  in  the  habit  of  modifying  extensively 
everything  which  they  adopt  from  others,  and  impressing  on  it 
the  stamp  of  the  national  mind.'''  (W.  G.  Aston,  in  A  History 
of  fapanese  L  iter  a  lure. ) 

Rev.  C.  Munzinger,  who  has  striven  with  considerable  success, 
in  his  work  entitled  Die  Japaner,  to  cover  the  whole  field  of 
a  criticism  of  the  Japanese  mind  and  of  Japanese  intellectual, 
social,  and  religious  life,  arrives  at  conclusions  closely  similar  : 
— "  Great  talent,  but  little  genius.''  "  Martha  rather  than  Mary, 
— busy,  deft,  practical,  somewhat  superficial  withal,  not  deep, 
not  given  to  introspection."  "  Extraordinarily  perspicacious,  not 
profoundly  contemplative."  "  Highly  ethical,  not  highly  religious." 
"  An  intellectual  life  mechanical  rather  than  organic."  And 
Japonisation,  that  is,  the  method  whereby  native  insufficiency  is 
made  good  by  loans  from  abroad,  is  "  a  radical   process,   in  which 

little   is   bent    and    much   is    broken, a    process    rather    of 

accommodation  than  of  assimilation."  Nevertheless,  and  "  with 
all  his  lack  of  originality,  the  Japanese  is  a  strongly  marked 
individuality,  which  refuses  to  rest  permanently  content  with 
foreign  importations  in  their  foreign  shape." 

"  The  lack  of  originality  of  the  Japanese  is  very  striking  after 
one  has  got  over  one's  first  dazzle  at  strange  antipodal  sights. 
Modification  of  foreign  motif,  modification  always  artistic,  and  at 
times  delightfully  ingenious,  marks  the  extent  of  Japanese  origin- 
ality ..... .A   general    incapacity    for    abstract    ideas    is    another 

marked    trait   of  the   Japanese   mind Lastly,    the   decorous 

demeanor  of  the  whole  nation  betrays  the  lack  of  mental  activity 


Japanese  People.  257 

beneath.  For  it  is  not  rules  that  make  the  character,  but  character 
that  makes  the  rules.  No  energetic  mind  could  be  bound  by 
so  exquisitely  exacting  an  etiquette."'  (Percival  Lowell,  in 
Occult  Japan.) 

"  We  should  say.  .  .  .that  the  most  striking  quality  of  the  Japan- 
ese is  precocity,  that  the  keenness  of  their  perceptions  is  far  in 
advance  of  the  soundness  of  their  judgments,  that  their  minds, 
or  rather  the  minds  of  their  leading  classes,  are  always  on  the 
rush,  that  they  receive  ideas  and  lay  aside  ideas  much  as  acute 
youngsters  do ... .  The  Japanese  upper  class  strike  us,  in  fact,  as 
the  undergraduates  of  the  human  family,  clever,  enjoying,  and 
full  of  'go,'  but  as  yet  immature ....  They  love  change  for  the 
sake  of  change,  take  up  ideas  because  they  are  startling  to  their 
seniors  or  to  their  Government  or  to  themselves,  and  suffer  none 
of  them  to  really  dye  their  minds  with  any  permanent  colour. .  .  . 
They  are  open  to  all  teachings,  which,  however,  go  about  one 
inch  deep ....  They  devise  a  constitution  which  does  not  work, 
except  so  far  as  it  is  sustained  by  the  old  fact  of  the  Mikado's 
authority  ;  they  start  a  press  which  discusses  everything  in  the 
spirit  of  an  undergraduate's  wine-party  ;  they  even  adopt  a  new 
costume  and  live  in  constricting  uniforms  before  the  majority 
have  given  up  the  habit  of  living  in  a  loin-cloth ....  [The  Japanese] 
has  an  enormous  respect  for  the  words  of  ancient  philosophers 
and  European  writers,  will  quote  them,  as  our  countrymen  quote 
proverbs,  as  if  they  ended  discussion ;  but  he  does  not  all  the 
while  absorb  this  wisdom,  and  will  pass  from  believing  in,  say, 
St.  Augustine,  to  believing  in,  say,  Mr.  Grant  Allen  at  a  bound, 
and  with  no  sense  that  he  is  exhibiting  volatility  of  intellect." 
(From  an  article  in  the  Spectator  of  the  5th  December,  1896, 
founded  on  numerous  appreciations  forwarded  by  a  twenty  years' 
resident.) 

Pierre  Loti,  in  his  Madame  Chrysanlhbne  and  Japoneries 
d Aulomne,  emphasises  over  and  over  again  one  particular  aspect 
of  Japanese  life — its  smallness,  its  quaintness,  its  comicality.  Here 
are  just  a  few  samples  of  the  adjectives  which   he  sows  broadcast 


258  Japanese  People. 

over  his  pages,  almost  exhausting  the  resources  of  the  French 
language  in  that  direction  :  petit,  bizarre,  disparate,  heteroghie, 
invraisemblable,  mignon,  bariole,  extravagant,  inimaginable,  frele, 
monslrueux,  grotesque,  mievre,  exotique,  lilliputien,  minuscule,  ?naniere, 
etc.,  etc.  The  houses  are  all  maisonnettes ;  each  garden  is,  not 
a  jar  din,  but  a  jar  dine  t,  each  meal  a  dinette,  each  inscription  a 
griff onnage.  The  Kobe-Kyoto  railway  is  un  drole  de  petit  chemin 
de  fer,  qui  na  pas  fair  serieux,  qui  fait  I'effet  dune  chose  pour 
rire,  comme  toutes  les  choses  japonaises. — Doubtless  there  is  an 
element  of  truth  in  all  this.  Query  :  is  it  the  whole  truth  ?  Pierre 
Loti's  final  and  sweeping  condemnation  of  Japan,  as  he  was 
preparing  to  set  sail,  is  as  follows  :  "  Je  le  trouve  petit,  vieitlot, 
a  bout  de  sang  et  a  bout  de  seve  ;  j'ai  conscience  de  son  antiquile 
antediluvienne  ;  de  sa  momificalion  de  tant  de  siecles,  qui  va  bienlot 
finir  dans  le  grotesque  et  la  bouffonnerie  piioyable,  au  contact  des 
nouveaules  d ' Occident." — Such  criticism,  published  sixteen  years  ago, 
reads  oddly  nowadays.  Instead  of  Japan  being  at  fault,  it  was  her 
French  detractor  whose  self-centred,  unsympathetic  attitude 
rendered  him  unfit  for  the  comprehension  of  a  highly  complex 
subject. 

Mr.  Walter  Dening,  whose  acquaintance  with  modern  Japa- 
nese literature  and  with  the  men  who  produce  it  is  probably 
unrivalled,  writes  as  follows  : 

"  It  is  well-known  that  one  of  the  most  marked  characteristics  of 
the  Japanese  mind  is  its  lack  of  interest  in  metaphysical,  psy- 
chological, and  ethical  controversy  of  all  kinds.  It  is  seldom  you 
can  get  them  to  pay  sufficient  attention  to  such  questions  to  admit 
of  their  understanding  even  their  main  outlines."     And  again  : — 

"  Neither  their  past  history  nor  their  prevailing  tastes  show 
any  tendency  to  idealism.  They  are  lovers  of  the  practical  and 
the  real  :  neither  the  fancies  of  Goethe  nor  the  reveries  of  Hegel 
are  to  their  liking.  Our  poetry  and  our  philosophy  and  the  mind 
that  appreciates  them  are  alike  the  result  of  a  network  of  subtle 
influences  to  which  the  Japanese  are  comparative  strangers.  It 
is  maintained   by  some,   and   we   think   justly,    that  the   lack    of 


Japanese  People.  259 

idealism  in  the  Japanese  mind  renders  the  life  of  even  the  most 
cultivated  a  mechanical,  humdrum  affair  when  compared  with 
that  of  Westerns.  The  Japanese  cannot  understand  why  our 
controversialists  should  wax  so  fervent  over  psychological,  ethical, 
religious,  and  philosophical  questions,  failing  to  perceive  that 
this  fervency  is  the  result  of  the  intense  interest  taken  in  such 
subjects.  The  charms  that  the  cultured  Western  mind  finds  in  the 
world  of  fancy  and  romance,  in  questions  themselves,  irrespective 
of  their  practical  bearings,  is  for  the  most  part  unintelligible  to 
the  Japanese." 

Dr.  Busse,  in  his  elaborate  essay  on  the  Japanese  ethical 
literature  of  the  present  day,  complains  of  the  want  of  thorough- 
ness, of  insight,  and  of  original  thought  which  inclines  the  leaders 
of  Japanese  opinion  to  a  superficial  eclecticism.  They  attack 
problems,  says  he,  with  a  light  heart,  because  not  appreciating 
their  true  difficulty. 

A  careful  and  fair-minded  writer  says,  speaking  of  the  danger 
run  by  Japan  from  European  aggression  during  the  first  years  of 
renewed  intercourse  :  "  She  was  saved  by  the  possession  of  a 
remarkable  combination  of  national  characteristics, — the  powers  of 
observation,  of  appreciation,  and  of  imitation.  In  a  word,  her 
sensitiveness  to  her  environment  and  her  readiness  to  respond  to  it 
proved  to  be  her  salvation."  He  also  repeatedly  asserts  the  Japanese 
to  be  "  an  emotional  people."  The  whole  trend  of  his  argument 
however,  goes  to  minimise  racial  divergences  and  special  aptitudes 
or  failings.  "  The  differences,"  he  writes,  "  which  separate  the 
Oriental  from  the  Occidental  mind  are  infinitesimal  as  compared 
with  the  likenesses  which  unite  them."  (Rev.  S.  L.  Gulick,  in 
Evolution  of  the  Japanese.) 

In  discussing  their  Japanese  neighbours,  the  foreign  residents 
frequently  advert  to  the  matter-of-fact  way  of  looking  at  things 
which  characterises  all  the  nations  that  have  come  under  Chinese 
influence.  The  Editor  of  the  "  Japan  Mail  "  has  drawn  an  acute 
distinction  between  the  mailer-of-fact  Japanese  and  the  practical 
European,   instancing  the  calculations  of  a  pamphleteer  anent  a 


260  Japanese  People. 

projected  line  of  railway,  the  probable  yearly  profits  of  which 
were  worked  out  to  decimals  of  a  cent  !  The  matter-of-fact 
Japanese  calculator  simply  transferred  to  his  pamphlet  the  figures 
that  came  out  on  his  abacus.  The  practical  (because  also  theo- 
retical) European  knows  that  such  apparent  exactness  is  illusory. 
We  have  ourselves  often  seen,  when  travelling  through  various 
provinces  of  Japan,  the  distances  along  roads  (in  one  instance 
across  a  wide  strait  of  the  sea)  given,  not  only  down  to  feet, 
but  down  to  inches  I 

Here  are  two  or  three  shorter  dicta  on  the  land  and  its 
people  : — 

"  The  land  of  disappointments."  (An  old  resident  in  the 
Japanese  service.) 

"  They  impress  me  as  the  ugliest  and  the  most  pleasing  people 
I  have  ever  seen,  as  well  as  the  neatest  and  most  ingenious." 
(Mrs.  Bishop,  in  Unbeaten  Tracks  in  Japan.) 

"  The  land  of  gentle  manners  and  fantastic  arts."  (Sir  Edwin 
Arnold.)  The  same  author  says  of  the  Japanese  :  "  They  have 
the  nature  rather  of  birds  or  butterflies  than  of  ordinary  human 

beings They    will    not    and    cannot   take    life  an  grand 

serieux."  (!!) 

People  are  fond  of  drawing  comparisons  between  the  Chinese 
and  the  Japanese.  Almost  all  seem  agreed  that  the  Japanese  are 
much  the  pleasanter  race  to  live  with, — clean,  kindly,  artistic.  On 
the  other  hand,  the  Chinese  are  universally  allowed  to  be  far  more 
trustworthy.  "  I  know,"  says  Sir  Ewen  Cameron,  late  Manager 
of  the  Hongkong  and  Shanghai  Bank  in  Shanghai,  "of  no  people 
in  the  world   I   would  sooner  trust  than  the  Chinese  merchant  or 

banker For  the  last  twenty- five  years  the  bank  has  been 

doing  a  very  large  business  with  Chinese  in  Shanghai,  amounting, 
I  should  say,  to  hundreds  of  millions  of  taels,  and  we  have  never 
met  with  a  defaulting  Chinaman."  Or  listen  (we  cull  at  random 
one  more  testimony  from  among  a  hundred)  to  Mr.  J.  Howard 
Gwyther,  chairman  of  the  Chartered  Bank  of  India,  Australia, 
and   China.     Speaking  in   19CO  at  the  half-yearly  general  meeting 


Japanese  People.  261 

of  the  bank  in  London,  that  gentleman  said  :  "I  take  this 
opportunity  of  stating  that  the  bank  has  had  very  extensive  deal- 
ings with  Chinese  traders,  and  has  always  found  them  reliable  and 
honest.  By  their  integrity  and  solvency  they  have  shown  a  bright 
example  to  other  mercantile  communities/'  Mr.  T.  R.  Jernigan, 
ex-Consul-General  of  the  United  States  at  Shanghai,  expresses 
himself  in  almost  identical  terms  in  his  work  entitled  China's 
Business  Methods  and  Policy,  published  in  1904. — Woefully 
different  from  this  is  the  tale  told  by  the  European  bankers  and 
merchants  in  Japan.  The}-  complain,  it  is  true,  not  so  much  of 
actual,  wilful  dishonesty — though  of  that,  too,  they  affirm  there  is 
plenty — as  of  pettiness,  constant  shilly-shallying,  unbusinesslikeness 
almost  passing  belief.  Hence  the  wide  divergence  between  the 
impressions  of  the  holiday-making  tourist,  and  the  opinions  formed 
by  the  commercial  communities  at  the  open  ports.  Japan,  the 
globe-trotter's  paradise,  is  also  the  grave  of  the  merchant's  hopes. 
Another  deep-seated  difference  between  the  Chinese  and  the 
Japanese  is  that  the  former  have  race  pride,  the  latter  national 
vanity.  The  Chinese  care  nothing  for  China  as  a  political  unit, 
an  abstraction,  an  ideal  to  die  for  if  need  be ;  but  they  are 
nevertheless  inalienably  wedded  to  every  detail  of  their  ancestral 
civilisation.  The  Japanese,  though  they  have  twice,  at  intervals 
of  a  millennium,  thrown  everything  national  overboard,  are  intense 
nationalists  in  the  abstract.  In  fact,  patriotism  may  be  said  to  be 
their  sole  remaining  ideal.  No  Chinaman  but  glories  in  the  outward 
badges  of  his  race ;  no  Japanese  but  would  be  delighted  to  pass  for 
a  European  in  order  to  beat  Europeans  on  their  own  ground.  The 
Japanese,  too,  are  brave  almost  beyond  the  limits  of  practicality. 
The  Chinese,  eminently  practical  folks,  follow  the  doctrine  that 

He  who  fights  and  runs  away, 

May  live  to  fight  another  day. 

The  characteristic  in  which  the  Chinese  and  Japanese  most 
agree  (and  other  Far-Eastern  peoples — the  Koreans  for  example — 
agree  in  it  also)  is  materialism.  That  is  where  the  false  note  is 
struck,  which,  when  long  residence  has  produced  familiarity,  jars 


262  Japanese  People. 

on  European  nerves  and  prevents  true  intellectual  sympathy. 

One  more  quotation  only.  It  is  from  the  Rev.  G.  M.  Meacham, 
a  missionary  of  many  years'  standing,  and  epitomises  what 
hundreds  of  residents  have  thought  and  said  : — 

"  A  few  months  do  not  suffice  to  give  a  correct  understanding 
of  the  situation,  though  the  visitor  should  enjoy  the  kind  attention 
and  guidance  of  high  officials.  There  are  perhaps  no  people  under 
heaven  who  know  better  the  happy  art  of  entertaining  their  guests, 
and  none  perhaps  who  succeed  better  in  preoccupying  them  with 
their  views.  Indeed,  the  universal  experience  of  those  who  remain 
long  enough  in  this  country  to  see  beneath  the  surface  is  that 
first  impressions  are  very  deceitful." 

To  sum  up  :  the  average  judgment  formed  by  those  who  have 
lived  some  time  among  the  Japanese,  seems  to  resolve  itself  into 
three  principal  items  on  the  credit  side,  which  are  cleanliness, 
kindliness,  and  a  refined  artistic  taste,  and  three  items  on  the  debit 
side,  namely,  vanity,  unbusinesslike  habits,  and  an  incapacity  for 
appreciating  abstract  ideas. 

As  for  the  imitativeness  which  strikes  all  observers,  we  hesitate  to 
which  side  of  the  account  to  pass  it.  Most  persons  seem  to  blame 
it  as  a  symptom  of  intellectual  inferiority  : — they  term  it  lack  of 
originality.  By  some  we  have  heard  it  commended  as  a  proof  of 
practical  wisdom  in  a  world  where  most  ideas  of  any  value  have 
been  ventilated  already.  Whether  it  be  good  or  bad,  one  cannot 
but  marvel  at  seeing  into  what  finicky 'details  imitation  is  carried. 
This  will  strike  even  a  new-comer,  but  it  impresses  itself  on  an 
old  hand  with  ever-increasing  force.  We  remember,  for  example, 
that  some  years  ago  the  question  was  gravely  debated  as  to 
whether  the  custom  of  "  April  fool "  should  or  should  not  be 
introduced  into  Japan !  That  particular  suggestion  happens  to 
have  been  rejected  ;  but  the  fact  of  its  being  mooted  at  all  may 
serve  to  instance  the  extraordinary  lengths  to  which  the  passion  for 
adopting  things  foreign  has  been  pushed. 

So  far  this  little  symposium  on  the  mental  characteristics  of 
the  Japanese.      Any   one  who  thinks  it  not  full  enough  or  not 


Japanese  People.  263 

representative  enough,  is  earnestly  requested  to  supplement  it, 
either  from  his  personal  experience  or  from  his  reading.  For  our 
own  part,  we  cannot  but  feel  surprise  at  the  way  in  which,  like 
sheep  jumping  over  a  fence,  one  writer  after  another  has  enlarged 
on  certain  traits  as  characteristic  of  the  Japanese  nation,  which 
history  shows  to  be  characteristic  merely  of  the  stage  through 
which  the  nation  is  now  passing.  Their  modern  fervour  of  loyalty 
is  a  good  case  in  point : — Europe  manifested  exactly  the  same 
symptom  on  her  emergence  from  feudalism. 

Just  one  consideration  more  : — how  do  our  characteristics  strike 
the  Japanese  ?  From  hints  dropped  by  several  of  the  educated, 
and  from  the  still  more  interesting,  because  frankly  naive,  remarks 
made  by  Japanese  servants  whom  the  present  wrriter  has  taken  with 
him  to  Europe  at  different  times,  he  thinks  he  may  state  that  the 
travelled  Japanese  consider  our  three  most  prominent  characteris- 
tics to  be  dirt,  laziness,  and  superstition.  As  to  the  comparative 
dirtiness,  there  can  be  no  doubt  in  any  unprejudiced  mind.  You 
yourself,  honoured  Madam,  of  course  take  your  tub  regularly  every 
morning.  But  are  you  so  sure  that  your  butler,  your  coachman, 
even  your  lady's  maid,  as  regularly  take  theirs  ?  Again,  what  is 
a  stranger  who  hails  from  a  land  of  fifteen  working  hours  daily 
and  of  well-nigh  three  hundred  and  sixty-five  working  days  yearly, 
to  conclude  from  the  habits  of  European  artisans  and  servants, 
from  post-offices  closed  on  Sundays  either  totally  or  during 
portions  of  the  day,  etc.,  etc.?  With  regard  to  superstition,  that 
is  a  matter  of  individual  opinion.  Of  our  poetry,  our  music,  our 
metaphysics,  our  interest  in  all  manner  of  things  scattered  over 
the  two  worlds  of  sense  and  thought,  the  Japanese  visitor  to 
Western  lands  can  naturally  notice  little  and  appreciate  less. 
Neither  our  pictures  nor  our  cathedrals  touch  any  chord  in  his  heart. 
On  the  other  hand,  all  our  materially  useful  inventions  are  already 
shared  by  his  countrymen,  who  work  them — if  not  quite  as  well — at 
any  rate  more  cheaply  than  we  do,  and  in  ways  more  suitable 
to  their  peculiar  needs.  For  all  these  and  yet  other  reasons, 
Europe  and    America  make  a  far  less  favourable  impression  on 


264  Jinrikisha. 

the  Japanese  visitor  than  seems  to  be  generally  expected.  Be  he 
statesman  or  be  he  valet,  he  is  apt  to  return  to  his  native  land 
more  patriotic  than  he  left  it.     (See  also  Article  on  Woman.) 

Books  recommended.  Evolution  of  the  Japanese,  by  Rev.  S.  L.  Gulick. — The  Soul 
of  the  Far  East,  by  Percival  Lowell. — Die  Japaner,  by  Rev.  C.  Munzinger.  Excepting 
a  sbort  paper  by  Walter  Dening,  in  Vol.  XIX.  of  the  Asiatic  Transactions,  we  are 
acquainted  with  no  other  works  treating  explicitly  of  the  mental  characteristics  of  the 
Japanese;  but  Aston's  History  of  Japanese  Literature  and  Lafcadio  Hearn's  books  are 
perfect  mines  for  the  enquirer  to  dig  in.  To  residents  in  Japan  the  Rev.  Arthur  H. 
Smith's  somewhat  sombre  book,  entitled  Chinese  Characteristics,  should  prove  fruitful 
reading,  by  way  both  of  likeness  and  of  contrast. 

Jinrikisha.  The  origin  of  the  jinrikisha  is,  to  use  a  grandilo- 
quent phrase,  shrouded  in  obscurity.  One  native  account 
attributes  the  spark  of  invention  to  a  paralytic  old  gentleman  of 
Kyoto,  who,  some  time  before  1868,  finding  his  palanquin  un- 
comfortable, took  to  a  little  cart  instead.  According  to  another 
version,  one  Akiha  Daisuke,  of  Tokyo,  was  the  inventor,  about 
1870 ;  but  the  first  official  application  to  be  allowed  to  manufacture 
jinrikishas  was  made  about  the  same  time  by  a  man  called  Taka- 
yama  Kosaku.  The  usual  foreign  version  is  that  an  American 
named  Goble,  half-cobbler  and  half-missionary,  was  the  person 
to  suggest  the  idea  of  a  modified  perambulator  somewhere  about 
1867  ;  and  this  has  the  support  of  Mr.  Black,  the  author  of  Young 
Japan.  In  any  case,  the  invention,  once  made,  found  wide-spread 
favour.  There  are  now  over  33,000  jinrikishas  and  31,600  jinriki- 
sha-men  in  Tokyo  alone  ;*  and  the  ports  of  China,  the  Malay 
peninsula,  and  India,  as  well  as  Japan,  owe  to  the  jinrikisha  a 
fruitful  source  of  employment  for  their  teeming  coolie  population 
and  of  comfort  for  the  well-to-do  residents. 

The  compound  word  jinrikisha  (A*  jty  Jp-)  means  literally 
"  man-power- vehicle,"  that  is,  a  vehicle  pulled  by  a  man,  or,  as 
the  late  Mr.  Baber  wittily  suggested,  a  "pull-man-car."  Some 
have   imagined   sha   to   be   a   corruption   of  the  English    "car." 

*  At  the  begining  of  the  century  (1Q01),  the  number  was  still  larger,  viz.  41,000  jinriki- 
shas and  43,000  jinrikisha-men.  Since  then  electric  trams  have  been  introduced,  whose 
low  fares  [z  sen,  that  is  3  farthings  all  over  the  city)  have  entailed  a  partial  disuse  of 
other  conveyances. 


Jinrikisha.  265 

This  is  quite  erroneous.  S/ia  is  a  good  old  Chinese  word.  The 
poor  word  jiiirikisha  itself  suffers  many  things  at  the  hands  of 
Japanese  and  foreigners  alike.  The  Japanese  generally  cut  off  its 
tail  and  call  it  ji?iriki,  or  else  they  translate  the  Chinese  syllable 
sha  into  their  own  language,  and  call  it  kuruma.  The  English 
cut  off  its  head  and  maltreat  the  vowels,  pronouncing  it  rickshaw. 
One  English  dictionary  actually  gives  it  as  jenny ricks haw  ! 

An  ordinary  working  jinrikisha  costs  a  little  over  30  yen,  and 
will  last  three  years  if  repaired  a  couple  of  times  yearly.  Hand- 
some private  jinrikishas  may  come  to  45  or  even  50  yen.  The 
total  cost  of  the  outfit  of  a  jinrikisha-man — coat,  drawers,  hat, 
and  lantern  all  complete — is  estimated  at  from  2%  to  5  yen.  The 
usual  fare  is  from  15  to  25  sen  per  ri  (2  J  miles  English).  Many 
men  work  on  their  own  account,  their  one  jinrikisha  being  their 
stock  in  trade.  These  are  they  that  loiter  about  the  street  corners, 
waiting  for  a  job.  Others  board  with,  and  work  for,  a  master, 
or — as  the  more  patriarchal  Japanese  phrase  has  it — a  "  parent " 
(oya-kata),  this  master  owning,  it  may  be,  ten  or  twenty  jinrikishas, 
and  reckoning  with  his  men  twice  monthly.  In  the  large  cities, 
a  man  ma}'  earn  as  much  as  30  yen  a  month  by  this  humble 
occupation,  that  is,  more  than  the  salary  of  many  a  small  official 
of  several  years'  standing,  and  with  a  far  greater  share  of  excite- 
ment, amusement,  and  independence.  No  wonder  that  fresh 
batches  of  lads  from  the  country  continually  pour  in  to  replace 
those  whom  consumption  and  heart-disease — the  result  of  cold 
and  over-exertion — only  too  swiftly  remove  from  the  busy 
scene.  Jinrikishas  are  now  largely  exported  to  Shanghai  and 
other  places. 

The  heroes  of  the  jinrikisha  world  are  two  men  called  Muko- 
bata  and  Kitaga,  who,  in  May,  1891,  saved  the  life  of  the  then 
Czarewitch  (the  present  Czar)  from  an  assassin's  sword,  and  were 
forthwith  almost  smothered  under  the  rewards  and  honours  that 
poured  down  upon  them,  alike  from  their  own  sovereign  and  from 
the  Russian  Court.  One  of  them  unites  virtue  to  good  fortune  ; 
the  other  has  driven  himself  over  to  riotous  living". 


266  Kaempfer. 

Kaempfer.  If  Marco  Polo  was  the  first  to  bring  the  existence 
of  such  a  country  as  Japan  to  the  knowledge  of  Europeans,  and 
Mendez  Pinto  the  first  to  tread  its  shores,  Engelbert  Kaempfer 
(165 1 — 1 71 6)  may  truly  be  called  its  scientific  discoverer.  A 
native  of  Lemgow  in  Westphalia,  he  travelled  while  a  youth 
in  northern  Germany,  Holland,  and  Poland.  At  the  age  of 
thirty-two  he  joined  the  Swedish  diplomatic  service  as  secretary 
of  legation,  in  which  capacity  he  proceeded  through  Russia  and 
Tartary  to  the  Court  of  Ispahan.  Eager  for  a  sight  of  yet 
more  distant  lands,  he  then  entered  the  service  of  the  Dutch 
East  India  Company  in  the  capacity  of  surgeon,  sailed  from 
Ormuz  to  Batavia  in  1688,  and  thence  via  Siam  to  japan,  where 
he  arrived  in  the  month  of  September,  1690.  At  that  time,  the 
Dutch  were  the  only  European  nation  permitted  to  trade  with 
Japan,  and  even  they  were  confined  to  Deshima, — a  part  of 
Nagasaki, — where  jealous  care  was  taken  by  the  authorities  to 
keep  them  in  ignorance  of  all  Japanese  matters.  A  yearly  journey 
to  Yedo  to  make  obeisance  before  the  Shdgun  was  the  only  change 
in  their  monotonous  existence. 

Kaempfer  remained  in  Japan  but  two  years  and  two  months. 
Yet,  in  this  short  period  and  under  these  disadvantageous  cir- 
cumstances, he  compiled  a  work  which  for  the  first  time  gave 
the  world  fairly  accurate  information  concerning  the  history, 
geography,  religious  beliefs,  manners  and  customs,  and  natural 
productions  of  the  mysterious  island  empire.  Returning  to 
Europe  in  1694,  Kaempfer  settled  first  at  Ley  den  and  then  in 
his  native  town,  where  he  employed  himself  in  writing  his  two 
celebrated  works,  the  History  of  Japan  and  the  Amcenitates 
Exotica?,  in  practising  as  a  physician,  and  in  quarrelling  with  the 
odious  wife  whose  bad  temper  is  said  to  have  aggravated  the  fits 
of  colic  which  ended  in  his  death. 

The  History  of  Japan  appeared,  strange  to  say,  first  in  an 
English  translation  in  1727 — 8;  then  in  Latin  (1728),  Dutch 
(1729),  and  Erench  (1729).  All  these  were  translated  from  the 
English  version.     Lastly,  in   1777,  came  a  German  edition, — not 


Kago.  267 

exactly  the  German  original,  because  Kaempfer's  style  was  so 
terribly  dry  and  involved  as  to  make  the  booksellers  fear  that 
it  would  disgust  even  the  German  public,  long-suffering  as  the 
German  public  is  in  that  respect.  The  diction  was  accordingly 
modernised  and  touched  up.  Hence  Kaempfer's  work  has  never 
appeared  in  Kaempfer's  words.  Copies  of  all  the  editions  are 
now  rare,  and  command  high  prices. 

Kago.  The  generic  meaning  of  kago  is  "basket;"  but  the 
word  is  applied  specifically  to  one  particular  kind  made  of  split 
bamboos,  having  a  light  roof  atop  and  sometimes  a  strip  of 
cotton  stuff  on  one  side  to  ward  off  the  sun's  rays,  and  swung 
on  a  pole  which  two  men — one  in  front  and  one  behind — bear 
on  their  shoulders.  This  is  the  country  kago,  still  the  general 
means  of  conveyance  in  mountainous  districts,  where  jinrikishas 
are  not  practicable, — sometimes  even  where  they  are.  The 
person  carried  squats  much  in  the  same  way  as  the  Japanese  are 
accustomed  to  sit,  except  that  the  posture  is  semi-recumbent. 
He  does  not  experience  any  difficulty  in  (so  to  say)  abolishing 
his  legs.  The  kago  has  been  variously  modified  as  to  details  at 
different  times  and  places.  The  old  norimono  of  the  towns,  so 
often  mentioned  by  travellers  of  an  early  date  in  their  descriptions 
of  Daimyos'  processions,  was  but  a  glorified  kago.  Being  larger 
and  more  stately,  it  might  perhaps  be  termed  a  palanquin.  The 
specimens  preserved  (for  instance  at  the  Ueno  Museum  in  Tokyo) 
show  the  extent  to  which  luxury  was  carried  in  this  conveyance, 
where  the  bamboo  structure  of  its  rustic  prototype  was  exchanged 
for  costly  lacquer,  wrhere  carefully  fitted  slides  having  jalousies 
bound  with  silk  kept  out  the  profane  gaze  of  passers-by,  and  finely 
wrought  metal  fastenings  at  every  available  point  proclaimed  in 
heraldic  language  the  occupant's  aristocratic  birth. 

We  are  hot  aware  at  what  period  the  kago  was  introduced.  But 
it  must  have  been  comparatively  late,  as  in  mediaeval  days  ex- 
alted personages  escaping  from  the  pursuit  of  their  enemies  are 
recorded  to  have  done  so  pick-a-back  on  the  shoulders  of  some 


268  Kakke. 

sturdy  henchman.  Old  pictures  show  us  the  Emperor  Go-Daigo 
fleeing  in  this  guise  somewhere  about  the  year  1333.  At  that 
period  the  only  known  vehicles  seem  still  to  have  been  those 
lumbering  bullock-carts  so  often  pourtrayed  in  art,  which  had  for 
centuries  served  the  Japanese  nobility  in  their  pleasure  parties 
round  the  old  capital,  Kyoto.  But  probably  it  was  only  round 
the  capital  that  roads  on  which  they  could  be  used  existed,  nor 
were  they  in  any  case  applicable  to  occasions  demanding  speed 
and  secrecy. 

Kakke  is  the  same  disease  as  that  known  in  India  and 
the  Malay  peninsula  under  the  name  of  beri-beri,  and  may  be 
denned  in  popular  language  as  a  sort  of  paralysis,  as  it  is 
characterised  by  loss  of  motive  power  and  by  numbness,  especially 
in  the  extremities.  It  is  often  accompanied  by  dropsy.  All 
these  symptoms  are  due  to  a  degeneration  of  the  nerves,  which 
is  the  main  anatomical  feature  of  the  complaint.  In  severe  cases 
it  affects  the  heart,  and  may  then  become  rapidly  fatal,  though 
the  usual  course  of  the  disease  extends  over  several  months,  and 
mostly  ends  in  recovery.  But  he  who  has  had  one  attack  may 
expect  another  after  an  interval  of  a  year  or  two.  Some  persons 
have  had  as  many  as  ten  or  even  twenty  attacks,  all  setting  in 
with  the  warm  weather  and  disappearing  in  the  autumn.  Kakke 
attacks  with  special  frequency  and  virulence  young  and  otherwise 
healthy  men, — women  much  less  often,  scarcely  ever  indeed  except 
during  pregnancy  and  after  childbirth.  Children  of  both  sexes 
enjoy  almost  absolute  immunity.  The  disease  springs,  in  the 
opinion  of  some  medical  authorities,  not  from  actual  malaria,  as 
was  formerly  imagined,  but  from  a  climatic  influence  resembling 
malaria.  Others  have  sought  its  origin  in  the  national  diet, — 
some  in  rice,  some  in  fish.  In  favour  of  this  latter  view  is  to 
be  set  the  consideration  that  the  peasantry,  who  often  cannot 
afford  either  rice  or  fish,  and  have  to  eat  barley  or  millet  instead, 
suffer  much  less  than  the  townsfolk,  and  the  further  fact  that  an 
extraordinary   improvement  in  this  respect  has  been  observed  in 


Kakke.  269 

the  health  of  the  Japanese  navy  ever  since  Dr.  Takagi,  late 
Surgeon-General,  introduced  a  meat  and  bread  diet  for  the  sea- 
men.* Dr.  Scriba,  Emeritus  Professor  of  Surgery  at  the  Imperial 
University  of  Tokyo,  traverses  both  these  opinions,  f  According 
to  him,  it  is  the  crowding  together  of  men  in  spaces  imperfectly 
ventilated,  especially  when  these  spaces  are  covered  with  mats 
which  are  rarely  taken  up  or  renewed,  that  favours  the  development 
of  the  germs  of  the  malady.  The  change  of  diet  has  had  no 
direct  influence  in  ridding  the  navy  of  kakke.  What  has  done  so  is 
the  increased  attention  paid  of  recent  years  to  cleanliness  and 
ventilation,  combined  with  the  general  open-air  life  of  the  seamen. 
He  compares  the  suppression  of  kakke  in  the  navy  to  the 
suppression  of  hyaemia,  erysipelas,  etc.,  in  hospitals  since  the 
introduction  of  hygienic  and  antiseptic  precautions.  This  opinion 
gains  weight  from  the  notorious  fact  of  the  influence  of  crowding 
in  propagating  the  disease,  and  from  its  comparative  frequency 
in  low  alluvial  situations. 

Whether  kakke  is  indigenous  or  imported,  is  a  question  that 
cannot  yet  be  answered ;  but  the  latter  alternative  seems  the 
more  probable,  as  the  first  mention  of  it  occurs  only  two  hundred 
years  ago.  Then,  and  till  about  fifty  years  ago,  it  was  confined 
to  a  few  ports  on  the  Pacific  coast  of  Japan  *  and  to  some  large 
cities  in  constant  communication  with  those  ports,  such  as  Kyoto  ; 
and  in  all  these  localities,  barracks,  schools,  and  prisons  were 
the  places  most  affected.  The  construction  of  railways,  steamers, 
and  carriage  roads  has  converted  kakke  from  a  local  into  a  national 
scourge.  Restricting  itself  no  longer  to  low-lying  situations,  it  has 
invaded  almost  the  entire  country,  the  visitation  being  in  some 

*  In  1883  the  ratio  of  kakke  patients  was  231  per  mil.  of  the  entire  naval  force,  and 
49  of  the  cases  ended  in  death.  In  1898  the  ratio  had  sunk  to  0.87  per  mil.,  aud  there 
was  but  a  single  death;  in  other  words,  the  disease  had  been  practically  stamped  out. 
The  daily  rations  of  the  Japanese  seaman,  as  revised,  consist  of  £  lb.  of  bread,  £  lb.  of 
meat,  §  lb.  of  rice,  and  TBe  lb.  of  vegetables,  besides  small  quantities  of  fresh  fish,  tinned 
meat  and  fish,  various  cereals,  beans,  tea,  sugar,  and  soy.  It  is  claimed  that  under 
this  system,  not  only  has  kakke  ceased  to  be  a  scourge,  but  the  average  weight  of  the 
men  has  increased. 

t  In  a  private  communication  to  the  present  writer. 


2  70  Lacquer. 

cases  mysterious,  in  others  clearly  traceable  to  the  residence  of 
kakke  patients,  who,  having  been  sent  to  the  hills  for  change  of 
air,  have  left  a  legacy  of  their  disease  to  the  inhabitants. 

Books  recommended.  Kak^ke,  by  Wm.  Anderson,  F.R.C.S.,  printed  in  Vol  VI. 
Part  I.  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions"  (also  published  in  pamphlet  form). — Infections- 
krankheiten  in  Japan,  by  Dr.  E.  Baelz,  in  the  "  German  Asiatic  Transactions,"  Vol. 
III.  p.  301. — Die  Jafiaiiische  Kak-ke,  by  Dr.  B.  Scheube — Geographisch-mediciniscJic 
Studien,  by  Dr.  Wernich  ;  and  others  in  European  languages,  besides  reports  in  Japanese 
by  Drs.  Takagi  and  Miura. 

Kakemono.  The  kakemono,  or  hanging  scroll,  is  the  form 
in  which  Japanese  paintings  are  usually  mounted.  It  takes  the 
place  of  the  framed  picture  of  Europe ;  but  the  number  of 
kakemonos  displayed  in  any  single  room  is  limited  to  one,  a  pair, 
or  a  set  of  three.  Custom  has  moreover  fixed  on  the  iokonoma, 
or  alcove,  as  the  only  part  of  the  room  in  which  these  scrolls 
shall  be  hung,  and  prescribes  rigid  rules  for  the  dimensions  and 
other  details  of  the  mounting. 

The  invention  of  this  method  of  showing  off  pictures  and 
preserving  them — for  when  not  displayed,  the  kakemono  is  always 
tightly  rolled  up  and  stored  away — goes  back  to  very  early 
Chinese  days.  Sometimes  the  kakemono  contains,  instead  of  a 
picture,  some  valued  specimen  of  calligraphy.  For  Far-Eastern 
painting  is  a  sort  -of  writing,  and  the  writing  a  sort  of  painting, 
and  calligraphic  skill  is  no  less  esteemed  than  skill  in  the 
painter's  art. 

The  gaku  is  another  Japanese  method  of  mounting  pictures, 
which  more  closely  resembles  the  framed  picture  of  Europe,  but 
occupies  quite  a  subsidiary  place. 

Book  recommended.  Anderson's  Pictorial  Arts  of  JaJ>an,  Part  I.  pp.  116-120, 
where  every  detail  of  the  mounting  is  explained. 

Lacquer.  It  is  acknowledged  by  all  connoisseurs  that  in  the 
art  of  lacquer  the  Japanese  far  surpass  their  teachers,  the  Chinese. 
This  may  be  partly  because  the  lacquer-tree,  though  also  ap- 
parently introduced  from  China,  finds  in  Japan  a  more  congenial 
climate ;  but  we  shall  scarcely  err  in  attributing  the  superiority 
chiefly  to  the  finer  esthetic  instincts  of  the  Japanese.     So  exactly 


Lacquer.  2  7 1 

did  lacquer-work  suit  their  taste  and  talent,  that  they  were  already 
producing  triumphs  in  this  branch  of  art  at  an  epoch  when  England 
was  still  rent  by  the  barbarous  struggles  of  the  Heptarchy.  The 
highest  perfection  was,  however,  not  reached  at  once.  The  end 
of  the  fifteenth  century  may  be  said  to  have  been  the  dawn  of 
the  classic  age,  which,  culminating  about  the  year  1700,  lasted 
on  through  the  whole  eighteenth  century  and  the  first  half  of  the 
nineteenth. 

Appreciation  of  lacquer  is  a  taste  which  has  to  be  acquired, 
but  which,  when  acquired,  grows  upon  one,  and  places  the  best 
lacquer  in  the  category  of  almost  sacred  things.  To  show  a 
really  fine  piece  casually  to  a  new-comer,  or  to  send  it  home  as 
a  gift  to  one  of  the  uncultivated  natives  of  Europe  or  America, 
is,  as  the  Japanese  proverb  says,  "  like  giving  guineas  to  a  cat." 
He  will  take  it  up  for  an  instant,  just  glance  at  it,  say  "  What 
a  pretty  little  thing  !  "  and  put  it  down  again,  imagining  it  to  be 
worth  at  most  a  couple  of  dollars.  Not  improbably  it  cost  a 
hundred,  and  was  the  outcome  of  years  of  patient  toil  and 
marvellous  art. 

The  material  employed  is  the  sap  which  exudes  from  the 
lacquer-tree  {Rhus  verniciferd)  when  incised.  This  tapping  for 
lacquer,  as  it  may  perhaps  be  calledr  affords  a  means  of  livelihood 
to  a  special  class  of  men,  who,  on  the  approach  of  mild  weather 
in  April,  spread  all  over  the  northern  provinces  of  the  empire, 
where  the  best  lacquer-trees  grow,  and  continue  their  operations 
on  into  the  autumn.  The  age  of  the  tree,  the  season  when  the 
tree  is  tapped,  and  the  treatment  to  which  the  sap  is  afterwards 
subjected — as,  for  instance,  by  being  mixed  with  iron  filings, 
turpentine,  or  charred  wood — produce  widely  different  kinds  of 
lacquer,  which  are  accordingly  appropriated  to  different  uses. 
Every  species  of  lacquer  turns  black  on  exposure  to  the  light ; 
and  it  is  a  fact,  mysterious  but  undoubtedly  authentic,  that 
lacquer  dries  most  quickly  in  a  damp  atmosphere.  The  damper 
the  atmosphere  and  the  darker  the  room,  so  much  the  more 
quickly  will  the  lacquer  harden. 


272  Lacquer. 

Many  kinds  of  material  admit  of  being  lacquered.  On  metal, 
in  particular,  very  pleasing  results  have  been  obtained.  But  the 
favourite  material  is  wood,  and  the  best  kinds  of  wood  for  the 
purpose  are  the  hinoki  {Chamcecyparis  obtusd)  and  hiri  (Paulownia 
imperialis).  The  woods  of  the  Cryptomeria  japonica  (sugi)  and 
Planer  a  japonica  {keyaki)  are  those  best  adapted  to  general  purposes, 
such  as  common  bowls,  trays,  etc.  The  Japanese  constantly 
employ  lacquer  utensils  to  hold  boiling  soups,  alcoholic  drinks, 
and  even  burning  cigar-ash.  But  so  strong  is  the  substance 
that  it  suffers  little  if  any  damage  from  such  apparently  rough 
treatment. 

The  process  of  lacquering  is  complicated  and  tedious.  To 
begin  with,  the  surface  of  the  wood  is  covered  with  triturated 
hemp  and  glue,  and  then  the  first  coating  of  lacquer  is  applied, 
only  to  be  itself  covered  with  the  very  finest  hempen  cloth. 
Numerous  coatings  of  various  qualities  of  lacquer  are  laid  on 
this  foundation.  A  careful  drying  intervenes  between  each  coat- 
ing, and  a  partial  rubbing  off  with  a  whetstone  follows  each 
drying.  A  powder  formed  of  calcined  deer's  horn  serves  in  most 
cases  to  give  the  final  polish.  But  all  this  process,  of  which  we 
have  merely  indicated  the  bare  outlines,  is  itself  but  preparatory 
if  the  object  is  to  produce  one  of  those  beautiful  gold-lacquered 
boxes  which  the  word  "  lacquer  "  generally  calls  up  in  the  mind 
of  the  European  collector.  In  this  case,  writes  one  of  the 
authorities  quoted  below  : 

"  A  thin  species  of  paper,  prepared  with  sizing  made  of  glue 
and  alum,  is  used.  On  this  paper  the  design  required  to  be 
transmitted  to  the  lacquered  article  is  drawn.  On  the  reverse  of 
this  paper,  the  outline  is  lightly  traced  in  lacquer — previously 
roasted  over  live  charcoal  to  prevent  its  drying — with  a  very  fine 
brush  made  of  rat's  hair.  This  paper  is  then  laid  on  the  article 
to  be  lacquered,  and  is  rubbed  with  a  spatula  made  of  hinoki  or 
whalebone,  where  the  lacquer  has  been  applied,  and  on  removing 
the  paper  the  design  is  observed  lightly  traced  in  lacquer. 

"  To  make  it  perfectly  plain,  this   is  rubbed  over  very   lightly 


Lacquer.  273 

with  a  piece,  of  cotton  wool,  charged  with  finely  powdered  whet- 
stone, or  tin ;  this  brings  the  pattern  out  white.  From  one 
tracing,  upwards  of  twenty  impressions  can  be  taken  off,  and 
when  that  is  no  longer  possible,  from  the  lacquer  having  become 
used  up,  it  only  requires  a  fresh  tracing  over  the  same  paper  to 
reproduce  the  design  ad  infinitum.  This  tracing  does  not  dry, 
owing  to  the  lacquer  used  for  the  purpose  having  been  roasted, 
as  previously  mentioned,  and  can  be  wiped  off  at  any  time. 

"  The  pattern  thus  traced  out  is  then  filled  in  with  ground-work 
lacquer,  with  a  brush  made  of  hare's  hair,  great  care  being  taken 
not  to  touch  or  paint  out  the  original  tracing  line.  This  is  then 
powdered  over  with  fine  gold  dust,  silver  dust,  or  tin  dust, 
according  to  the  quality  of  the  ware.  This  dust  is  applied  with 
a  piece  of  cotton  wool,  charged  with  the  material  to  be  used, 
and  the  article  is  then  gently  dusted  with  a  very  soft  brush  made 
from  the  long  winter  coat  of  a  white  horse,  to  remove  any  loose 
metal  dust  that  might  adhere  to  the  article,  and  to  slightly 
smoothen  the  surface.  If  the  article  under  manufacture  is  large, 
only  a  small  portion  is  done  at  a  time,  and  it  is  at  once  enclosed 
in  an  air-tight  press,  so  as  to  prevent  any  dust  or  outside  matter 
adhering  to  the  freshly  lacquered  surface.  At  the  proper  time, 
when  the  lacquer  has  sufficiently  hardened,  the  article  is  taken 
out,  and  the  part  over  which  the  gold  dust  has  been  sprinkled 
receives  a  coat  of  transparent  varnish  (suki-urushi),  laid  on  with 
a  hare's  hair  brush,  and  a  further  portion  is  prepared  with  a 
coating  of  gold  dust,  as  on  the  previous  day  :  the  article  is  again 
closed  up  in  the  air-tight  damp  press  as  before,  till  dry.  When 
the  portion  which  has  received  the  second  coat  of  lacquer  over 
the  gold  dust  is  quite  hard,  it  is  rubbed  smooth  with  a  piece  of 
hard  charcoal  made  from  camellia  wood  or  honoki,  until  the 
whole  is  level  with  the  surrounding  parts.  Then  it  is  rubbed 
with  the  finger  and  some  finely  powdered  whetstone  and  deer's 
horn,  with  the  smallest  quantity  of  oil,  till  it  attains  a  fine  polish. 
If  upon  this  surface  any  further  work  takes  place,  such  as  the 
vetoing  of  leaves,  or   the   painting   of  stamens,  etc.,   of  flowers, 


274  Language. 

these  are  traced  in  lacquer  and  covered  with  gold  dust,  and 
when  dry  the  final  polish  is  given  with  the  finger  and  powdered 
deer's  horn." 

Such  is  the  most  usual  process,  which  is  suitably  modified  in 
the  case  of  raised  gold  lacquer  and  other  varieties.  It  should 
be  added  that  much  of  the  so-called  gold  or  silver  lacquer  is 
really  manufactured  with  the  aid  of  bronze  and  tin,  especially 
at  the  present  time,  when  cheapness  and  quantity  are  insisted  on 
by  a  foreign  public  whose  taste  is  imperfectly  educated.  Never- 
theless, specimens  worthy  of  the  best  age  still  continue  to  be 
produced.  Competent  critics  assert  that  Shibata  Zeshin,  who 
died  as  lately  as  1891,  was  probably  as  great  as  any  lacquer  artist 
that  ever  existed,  and  that  others  no  less  skilled  are  still  living 
to-day. — The  lacquer  poison,  of  which  so  much  has  been  said 
by  travellers,  is  never  fatal,  though  it  is  extremely  painful  in  some 
cases.  Blood  to  the  head,  swelling,  violent  itching  and  burning, 
occasionally  small  festering  boils,  are  the  symptoms.  Lacquer  in 
any  stage,  except  when  perfectly  dry,  is  capable  of  producing  it. 
The  lacquer  tappers  always  use  gloves  as  a  protection. 

Only  one  item  more.  If  you  possess  any  specimens  of  good 
lacquer,  be  careful  to  dust  them  with  a  fine  old  silk  cloth.  A 
common  duster  will  scratch  them.  Some  of  the  best  collections 
in  Europe  have  been  ruined  by  rough  treatment. 

Books  recommended.  Tltc  Lacquer  Industry  of  JaJ>an,  by  J.  J.  Quin,  in  Vol 
IX.  Part  I.  of  the  "  Asiatic  Transactions." — T/te  Industries  of  Japan,  by  J.  J.  Rein, 
p.  338  et  scq. — Brinkley's   China  and  Japan,  Vol.  VII.,  p.  341  et  seg. 

Language.  Excepting  the  twin  sister  tongue  spoken  in  the 
Luchu  Islands,  the  Japanese  language  owns  no  kindred,  and  its 
classification  under  any  of  the  recognised  linguistic  families  remains 
doubtful.  In  structure,  though  not  to  any  appreciable  extent  in 
vocabulary,  it  closely  resembles  Korean  ;  and  both  it  and  Korean 
may  possibly  be  related  to  Mongol  and  to  Manchu,  and  might 
therefore  lay  claim  to  be  included  in  the  so-called  "  Altaic " 
group.  In  any  case,  Japanese  is  what  philologists  term  an 
agglutinative  tongue,  that  is    to  say,  it  builds  up   its  words   and 


Language. 


275 


grammatical  forms  by  means  of  suffixes  loosely  soldered  to  the 
root  or  stem,  which  is  invariable.  Though  not  originally  related 
to  Chinese,  Japanese  has  adopted  an  enormous  number  of  Chinese 
words,  such  words  having  naturally  followed  Chinese  civilisation 
into  the  archipelago.  Even  at  the  present  day,  the  Japanese 
language  has  recourse  to  Chinese  for  terms  to  indicate  all  such 
new  things  and  ideas  as  "  telegram,"  "  bicycle/'  "  photograph," 
"  democracy,"  "  natural  selection,"  "  limited  liability,"  etc.,  etc., 
much  as  we  ourselves  have  recourse  to  Latin  and  Greek.  Hence  a 
curious  result  :— the  Europeanisation  of  Japanese  institutions  has 
made  the  language  far  more  humbly  tributary  to  China  to-day 
than  it  ever  was  while  Confucianism  reigned  supreme  in  the  land. 

The  fundamental  rule  of  Japanese  syntax  is  that  qualifying 
words  precede  the  word  they  qualify.  Thus  the  adjective  or 
genitive  precedes  the  noun  which  it  defines,  the  adverb  precedes 
the  verb,  and  explanatory  or  dependent  clauses  precede  the 
principal  clause.  The  object  likewise  precedes  the  verb.  The 
predicative  verb  or  adjective  of  each  clause  is  placed  at  the  end 
of  that  clause,  the  predicative  verb  or  adjective  of  the  main  clause 
rounding  off  the  entire  sentence,  which  is  often,  even  in  familiar 
conversation,  extremely  long  and  complicated.  The  following  is 
an  example  of  Japanese  construction  : — 


Ko?io  goro  ni  iiarimashife,     Bukkyo 

This  period  at  having-arrived,  Buddhism 

to       mosu      mono      wa,       tada    katb- 

that    [they)  say     thing     as- for,    merely    low- 

jimmin  no    shinjiru  iokoro    io      nat- 

class-people's    believing   place    that    having- 

te,  chuio  ijo  de 

become,     middle-class     thence-upwards     in 

wa  sono  ddri  wo     wakimae-teru  hito 

as-for,  its  reason' accus.)  discerning-are  people 

ga  sukunaku  ;  shiimon     to         ieba, 

{nom.)    being-few,   religion    that    if-one-says, 

soshiki  no     toki     bakari   ni     mochiiru 

funeral-rite's    time        only        in         employ 

koto  no    yd       ni  omoimasu. 

thing's  manner  in  <Jhey)thinJt. 


'•  At  the  present  day, 
Buddhism  has  sunk 
into  being  the  belief 
of  the  lower  classes 
only.  Few  persons  in 
the  middle  and  upper 
classes  understand  its 
raison  d'etre,  most  of 
them  fancying  that 
religion  is  a  thing  which 
comes  into  play  only  at 
funeral  services." 


276  Language. 

This  one  example  may  suffice  to  show  how  widely  divergent 
(compared  with  Europe)  are  the  channels  in  which  Japanese 
thought  flows.  Nor  is  it  merely  that  the  idioms  differ,  but  that 
the  same  circumstances  do  not  draw  from  Japanese  speakers 
remarks  similar  to  those  which  they  would  draw  from  European 
speakers.  In  accidence  also  the  disparity  is  remarkable. 
Japanese  nouns  have  no  gender  or  number,  Japanese  adjectives 
no  degrees  of  comparison,  Japanese  verbs  no  person.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  verbs  have  peculiar  complications  of  their  own. 
They  have  a  negative  voice,  and  forms  to  indicate  causation  and 
potentiality.  There  is  also  an  elaborate  system  of  honorifics, 
which  to  some  extent  replaces  the  use  of  person  in  the  verb  and 
makes  good  the  general  omission  of  personal  pronouns. 

The  Japanese  vocabulary,  though  extraordinarily  rich  and 
constantly  growing,  is  honourably  deficient  in  terms  of  abuse. 
It  affords  absolutely  no  means  of  cursing  and  swearing.  An- 
other negative  quality  is  the  habitual  avoidance  of  personifica- 
tion,—a  characteristic  so  deep-seated  and  all-pervading  as  to 
interfere  even  with  the  use  of  neuter  nouns  in  combination  with 
transitive  verbs.  Thus,  this  language  rejects  such  expressions  as 
"  the  heat  makes  me  feel  languid,"  "  despair  drove  him  to  commit 
suicide,"  "  science  warns  us  against  overcrowding,"  "  quarrels 
degrade  those  who  engage  in  them."  etc.,  etc.  One  must  say, 
"  being  hot,  I  feel  languid,"  "  having  lost  hope,  he  killed  himself," 
"  on  considering,  we  find  that  the  fact  of  people's  crowding  together 
is  unhealthy,"  and  so  on, — the  idea  being  adequately  rendered 
no  doubt,  but  at  the  expense  of  verve  and  picturesqueness.  Nor 
can  any  one  fully  realise  how  picturesque  our  European  languages 
are,  how  saturated  with  metaphor  and  lit  up  with  fancy,  until 
he  has  familiarised  himself  with  one  of  the  tamer  tongues  of  the 
Far  East.  Poetry  naturally  suffers  more  than  prose  from  this 
defect  of  the  language.  No  Japanese  Wordsworth  could  venture 
on  such  metaphorical  lines  as 


Language.  277 

"  If  Thought  and  Love  desert  us,  from  that  day 
Let  us  break  off  all  commerce  with  the  Muse  : 
With   Thought  and  Love  companions  of  our  way — 
Whate'er  the  senses  take  or  may  refuse, — 
The  Mind's  internal  heaven  shall  shed  her  dews 
Of  inspiration  on  the  humblest  lay." 
In  fact,  most  metaphors  and  allegories  are  incapable  of  so  much 
as  intelligible  explanation  to  Far-Eastern  minds. 

Japanese — with  its  peculiar  grammar,  its  still  uncertain  affinities, 
its  ancient  literature — is  a  language  worthy  of  more  attention  than 
it  has  yet  received.  We  say  "  language  ;  "  but  "  languages  "  would 
be  more  strictly  correct,  the  modern  colloquial  speech  having 
diverged  from  the  old  classical  tongue  almost  to  the  same  extent 
as  Italian  has  diverged  from  Latin.  The  Japanese  still  employ  in 
their  books,  and  even  in  correspondence  and  advertisements,  a 
style  which  is  partly  classical  and  partly  artificial.  This  is  what 
is  termed  the  "Written  Language."  The  student  therefore  finds 
himself  confronted  with  a  double  task.  Add  to  this  the  necessity 
of  committing  to  memory  two  syllabaries,  one  of  which  has  many 
variant  forms,  and  at  least  two  or  three  thousand  Chinese  ideo- 
graphs in  forms  standard  and  cursive, — -ideographs,  too,  most  of 
which  are  susceptible  of  three  or  four  different  readings  according 
to  circumstances, — add  further  that  all  these  kinds  of  written 
symbols  are  apt  to  be  encountered  pell-mell  on  the  same  page, 
and  the  task  of  mastering  Japanese  becomes  almost  Herculean. 
Fortunately  the  pronunciation  is  easy,  and  there  is  no  difficulty  in 
acquiring  a  smattering  that  will  greatly  enhance  the  pleasure  and 
comfort  of  those  who  reside  or  travel  in  the  country.  Another 
grain  of  comfort,  in  the  midst  of  all  Japanese  linguistic  complica- 
tions, may  be  extracted  from  the  fact  that  local  dialects  have  but 
little  importance.  It  is  not  as  in  China,  where,  if  you  speak 
Pekingese  you  are  incomprehensible  at  Canton,  and  if  you  speak 
Cantonese  you  are  incomprehensible  at  Amoy  or  at  Shanghai. 
Here  the  one  standard  language  will  carry  you  right  through  the 
country.  No  doubt  the  peasantry  of  different  districts  have  local 
modes    of  pronunciation    and  expression  ;    but   the  trouble   thus 


278  Law. 

caused  is  no  greater  than  what  may  be  experienced  at  home  in 
England.  From  the  philologist's  standpoint,  the  most  interesting 
dialects  are  those  of  the  extreme  South  and  West,  which  preserve 
archaic  forms.  The  speech  of  the  more  recently  settled  North  is 
for  the  most  part  a  mere  patois,  an  omnium-gatherum  produced 
by  the  concourse  of  immigrants  from  other  provinces.  (See  also 
Articles  on  Literature  and  Writing.) 

Sooks  recommended.  The  foregoing  Article  is  partly  condensed  from  the  present 
writer's  Handbook  of  Colloquial  Japanese.  See  also  Imbrie's  English- Japanese  Ety- 
mology.— The  best  book  on  the  classical  language  is  Aston's  Grammar  of  the  Japanese 
IVrittcn  Language. — The  least  unsatisfactory  Japanese-English  dictionaries  are  the  Un- 
abridged by  Capt.  Brinkley  and  several  Japanese  collaborators,  and  Dr.  Hepburn's,  the 
latter  published  both  in  a  full  and  in  an  abridged  edition.  Satow's  small  dictionary, 
revised  by  Hampden  and  Parlett,  is  to  be  preferred  for  English-Japanese  The  best 
native  dictionary  is  the  Kotoba  no  Izutni. — The  best  collection  of  colloquial  texts 
romaniscd  is  Benkyoka  no  Tomo,  by  the  Abbe  Caron,  with  French  notes. — Rev.  C. 
Munzinger's  essay  entitled  Die  Psychologie  der  Japanischen  Sprache,  published  in  Part 
S3  of  the  "  German  Asiatic  Transactions,"  will  interest  the  philological  specialist. 

Law.*  Dutifully  obedient  to  authority  and  not  naturally 
litigious,  the  Japanese  are  nevertheless  becoming  a  nation  of 
lawyers.  Few  branches  of  study  are  more  popular  than  law  with 
the  young  men  of  the  present  generation.  Besides  being  often 
a  stepping-stone  to  office,  it  seems  to  have  for  them  a  sort 
of  abstract  and  theoretical  interest ;  for  (and  more's  the  pity) 
Japanese  law  has  at  no  time  been  the  genuine  outcome  of  the 
national  life,  as  English  law,  for  instance,  is  the  outcome  of 
English  national  life, — a  historical  development  fitting  itself  to  the 
needs  of  the  nation  as  a  well-made  glove  fits  the  hand.  Twelve 
hundred  years  ago  Japan  borrowed  Chinese  law  wholesale.  She 
has  borrowed  French  and  German  law  (that  is  to  say,  practically, 
Roman  law)  wholesale  in  our  own  day.  It  is  hard  to  see  what 
else  she  could  have  done  ;  for  she  would  never  have  been  admitted 
into  the  so-called  comity  of  civilised  nations  unless  equipped  with 
a  legal   system   commanding  those  nations'   approval,   and   those 


*  Ignorant  as  we  are  of  law,  this  article  must  be  considered  as  proceeding  from  our 
informant,  Mr.  Masujima.  All  that  we  have  done  has  been  to  put  into  shape  and 
abridge  the  information  which  ho  kincly  supplied. 


Law. 


279 


nations  approve  no  legal  system  save  such  as  they  are  accustomed 
to  themselves.  True,  there  was  a  party  almost  from  the  beginning 
which  said  :  "  Japan  for  the  Japanese.  Our  laws  must  suit  our 
people.  They  must  not  be  mere  handles  for  obtaining  political 
recognition.  Wait  to  codify  until  the  national  courts,  interpreting 
national  needs,  shall  have  evolved  precedents  of  their  own. 
French  and  German  codes  are  alien  things,  mechanically  super- 
imposed on  our  Japanese  ways  of  thought  and  modes  of  life, 
which  are  not  in  touch  with  foreign  civilisations  and  the  laws 
that  have  sprung  from  them."  But  this  national  party  lost  the 
day.  Possibly,  in  time  to  come,  modifications  dictated  by  national 
needs  may  creep  in.  It  is  noticeable  that  (perhaps  as  a  result  of 
the  healthy  reaction  of  the  last  sixteen  or  seventeen  years)  the  Civil 
Code,  the  most  recently  published  of  all,  does  to  a  not  incon- 
siderable extent  take  into  account  the  existing  fabric  of  Japanese 
society, — a  fabric  differing  widely  in  many  essential  points  from 
that  of  the  West ;  for  in  Japan  the  family  is  the  social  unit,  not, 
as  with  us,  the  individual. 

The  new  codes  resulting  from  the  legislative  activity  of  the  pre- 
sent reign  are  :  (1)  the  Criminal  Code  and  the  Code  of  Criminal 
Procedure,  drafted  by  Monsieur  Boissonade  de  Fontarabie  on 
the  basis  of  the  Code  Napoleon,  with  modifications  suggested  by 
the  old  Japanese  Criminal  Law;  these  were  published  in  1880, 
and  came  into  force  in  1882';  the  Code  of  Criminal  Procedure 
was,  however,  revised  in  1890,*  in  order  that  it  might  be  uniform 
with  the  Code  of  Civil  Procedure,  according  to  the  provisions  of 
(2)  the  Law  of  the  Organisation  of  Judicial  Courts,  promulgated 
in  the  month  of  February,  1890,  and  put  into  force  on  the  1st 
November  of  the  same  year";  (3)  the  Code  of  Civil  Procedure 
which  went  into  effect  at  once,  and  the  Civil  Code  and  the 
Commercial  Code  which   were  put  iuto  force  in  1898.     Though 


*  In  1901,  a  radical  revision  of  the  Criminal  Code  was  proposed.  But  such  opposition 
was  raised  by  members  of  the  legal  profession  that  the  bill  had  to  be  put  off  to  the 
next  session  of  the  Diet,  when  a  further  bill  for  the  revision  of  the  Code  of  Criminal 
Procedure  is  expected  to  be  submitted. 


280  Law. 

not  actually  entitled  codes,  we  may  also  include  :  (4)  the  Constitu- 
tion, with  its  attendant  laws  regarding  the  Imperial  House,  the 
Diet,  and  Finance;  (5)  the  Laws  for  the  Exercise  of  Local  Self- 
Government ;    and  (6)  divers  statutes  on  miscellaneous  subjects. 

Crimes,  as  classified  in  the  Criminal  Code,  are  of  three  kinds, 
namely  :  (1)  crimes  against  the  state  or  the  Imperial  Family, 
and  in  violation  of  the  public  credit,  policy,  peace,  health,  etc.  ; 
(2)  crimes  against  persons  and  property ;  (3)  police  offences. 
There  is  furthermore  a  subdivision  of  (1)  and  (2)  into  major  and 
minor  crimes. 

The  punishments  for  major  crimes  are  :  (1)  death  by  hanging; 
(2)  deportation  with  or  without  hard  labour,  for  life  or  for  a  term 
of  years  ;  (3)  imprisonment  with  or  without  hard  labour,  for  life 
or  for  a  term  of  years.  The  punishments  for  minor  crimes  include 
confinement  with  or  without  hard  labour,  and  fines.  The  punish- 
ments for  police  offences  are  detention  for  from  one  to  ten  days 
without  hard  labour,  and  fines  varying  from  5  sen  to  2  yen. 
The  court  which  tries  persons  accused  of  major  crimes  consists 
of  three  judges,  that  for  minor  crimes  of  one  judge  or  three 
according  to  the  gravity  of  the  charge,  and  that  for  police  offences 
of  one  juge  de  paix*  An  appeal  is  allowed  in  the  case  of  both 
major  and  of  minor  crimes  for  a  trial  of  facts.  Capital  punish- 
ments are  carried  out  in  the  presenee  of  a  procurator.  They  are 
now  extremely  rare.  Criminals  condemned  to  deportation  are 
generally  sent  to  the  island  of  Yezo,  where  they  sometimes  work 
in  the  mines.  The  ordinary  prisons  are  situated  in  various  parts 
of  the  empire,  and  number  one  hundred  and  thirty-two. 

A  person  who  has  suffered  injury  from  crime  lodges  his  complaint 
at  a  police  office  or  with  the  procurator  of  any  court  having  jurisdic- 
tion over  the  crime  in  question.  Policemen  can  arrest  an  offender 
whose  crime  was  commited  in  their  presence,  or  which  the 
complainant  avers  to  have  actually  seen  committed.  In  all  other 
cases   they   can  arrest  by   warrant  only.      Bail  is  allowed   at  the 

*  The  system  being  French,  it  seems  advisable  to  retain    the    French  terms  in   cases 
where  there  is  no  exact,  or  no  generally  current,  English  equivalent. 


Law. 


281 


discretion  of  the  judge,  but  only  after  reference  to  the  procurator 
who  has  taken  up  the  case.  Accused  persons  are  often  kept  in 
prison  for  a  considerable  time  before  trial,  and  no  lawyer  is  allow- 
ed to  be  present  at  the  preliminary  examination,  which  also  is 
often  long  delayed.  The  law  promulgated  in  February,  1890, 
relative  to  the  organisation  of  judicial  courts,  embodied  the  usage 
developed  since  the  establishment  of  the  courts  in  1872,  but 
it  introduced  at  the  same  time  certain  changes  borrowed  rather 
from  German  than  from  French  sources. 

The  history  and  nature  of  modern  Japanese  legal  institutions  are, 
very  briefly,  as  follows.  Down  to  1872,  the  Judicial  Department 
had  united  in  itself  the  functions  of  chief  law-court  and  chief 
executive  office  for  the  transaction  of  judicial  business  throughout 
the  land,  the  same  staff  of  officials  serving  for  both  purposes. 
In  that  year,  however,  a  separation  took  place.  Judges,  procura- 
tors, a  judicial  police  for  the  arrest  of  prisoners,  avoids,  avocats, 
and  notaries  were  established,  as  also  separate  judicial  courts  and 
a  law  school.  The  pattern  copied  was  French.  Since  that  time 
numerous  changes  have  taken  place.  At  present  the  courts  are 
divided  into  local  courts  (presided  over  by  juges  de  patx),  district 
or  provincial  courts,  courts  of  appeal,  and  a  supreme  court  {cour 
de  cassation),  all  of  which  have  jurisdiction  both  in  criminal  and 
civil  suits.  Each  of  these  courts  has  branch  offices  established 
to  accommodate  suitors,  regard  being  had  to  population  and  to 
the  area  of  jurisdiction.  The  local  courts  have  jurisdiction  over 
police  offences  and  such  minor  crimes  as  the  procurators  may 
deem  it  proper  to  punish  with  a  lighter  kind  of  punishment  ad- 
judged by  one  of  those  courts  ;  the  district  courts  have  jurisdiction 
over  crimes,  besides  acting  as  courts  of  preliminary  investigation  ; 
the  appeal  courts  hear  new  trials ;  the  supreme  court  hears  criminal 
appeals  on  matters  of  law.  Crimes  of  whatever  sort,  except  police 
offences,  are  as  a  rule  subjected  to  preliminary  examination  before 
actual  trial.  When,  however,  the  charge  is  perfectly  clear  of 
doubt,  the  procurators  ask  for  an  immediate  trial  in  the  case 
of  minor    crimes.     The  conducting  of   criminal  cases,   from  the 


282  Law. 

very  beginning  down  to  the  execution  of  the  criminal,  if  .he  be 
condemned  to  suffer  death,  rests  with  the  procurator,  who  unites 
in  his  own  person  the  functions  of  public  prosecutor  and  of 
grand  jury. 

The  present  judiciary  consists  almost  entirely  of  graduates  of 
the  Law  College  of  the  Imperial  University  and  of  the  private 
law  colleges,  of  which  there  are  six  in  Tokyo  and  eight  altogether 
in  the  empire.  About  a  thousand  young  men  graduate  yearly. 
Lawyers  are  bound  to  pass  a  certain  examination  before  being 
admitted  to  practise  at  the  bar ;  but  it  is  of  a  very  theoretical 
nature.  The  new  law  concerning  the  constitution  of  courts  requires 
candidates  for  judgeships  to  pass  two  competitive  examinations, 
unless  they  are  graduates  of  the  University,  in  which  case  they 
need  only  pass  the  second  of  the  two,  after  having  served  as 
probationary  judges  for  a  term  of  three  years.  Judges  are  appointed 
for  life ;  but  the  salaries  paid  are  so  miserably  poor  (from  600  to 
4,000 yen,  or  £60  to  ^400  per  annum  ! )  that  many  of  the  ablest 
judges  soon  resign  in  order  to  become  practising  barristers,  the 
bench  thus,  as  has  been  sarcastically  remarked,  serving  merely  as 
a  half-way  house  to  the  practise  of  the  law.  Things  have  indeed 
come  to  such  a  pass  that  in  the  spring  of  1901  a  number  of 
the  judges  and  public  procurators  actually  went  out  on  strike  ! 
The  presidents  of  courts  are,  however,  more  highly  remunerated. 
The  president  of  the  supreme  court  receives  5,500^/2  (£  55°)> 
and  is  of  shinnin  rank.*  The  chief  procurator  receives  5,000 yen 
{£  5°°)»  and  is  of  chokunin  rank. 

The  system  of  trial,  as  well  in  civil  as  in  criminal  cases,  is 
inquisitorial.  It  was  so  in  Old  japan,  and  is  so  in  France, 
whence  the  greater  part  of  modern  Japanese  law  has  been  derived. 
Formerly  no  convictions  were  made  except  on  confession  by 
the  prisoner.  Hence  an  abundant  use  of  torture,  now  happily 
abolished,f  and  a  tendency,  even  in  civil   cases,  to  find   against 


*  All  officials   are   classified    into  four   ranks,  shinniny  chokunin,  sonin,  and  hannin. 
The  shinnin  are  the  highest  of  all,  receiving  thiir  nomination  from  the  Emperor  himself. 
t  See  page  182,  footnote. 


Law.  283 

the  defendant,  although  the  theory  is  that  the  defendant  must  be 
presumed  to  be  in  the  right  until  actually  proved  the  contrary. 
In  this  characteristic,  Japan  does  but  conform  to  her  Continental 
models,  and  indeed  to  the  universal  usage  of  mankind  with  the 
solitary  exception  of  the  English.  The  judge  conducts  the  trial 
alone.  All  questions  by  counsel  must  be  put  through  him. 
Counsel  do  not  so  much  defend  their  clients  as  represent  them. 
Their  statements  or  admissions  stand  for  those  of  their  clients, 
strange  as  such  a  thing  will  sound  to  English  ears.  Another 
peculiarity — at  least  according  to  English  notions,  though  we 
believe  that  something  similar  exists  in  France — is  that  husband  and 
wife,  parent  and  child,  master  and  servant,  cannot  witness  against 
each  other.  At  the  same  time,  they  are  not  entirely  excluded  from 
the  examination.  The  Code  of  Criminal  Procedure  draws  a  fine 
distinction,  excluding  them  as  witnesses,  but  admitting  them  as 
"  referees,'' — we  can  think  of  no  better  equivalent  for  the  difficult 
Japanese  term  sankbnin  (^-^"^)-  A  "referee"  is  a  witness 
and  yet  not  an  authoritative  witness,  a  quasi-witness,  if  one  might 
so  phrase  it,  who  is  not  called  upon  to  be  sworn.  The  idea  is, 
of  course,  that  persons  thus  related  are  likely  to  be  prejudiced 
in  each  other's  favour,  and  that  their  testimony  should  accordingly 
be  allowed  little  weight  in  comparison  with  that  of  others  more 
probably  impartial.  Witnesses  are  sworn,  though  not  exactly  in 
the  European  manner.  The  oath  is  rather  a  solemn  asseveration, 
and  is  entirely  unconnected  with  any  religious  sanctions.  It  is  in 
the  form  of  a  written  document,  to  which  the  person  sworn  affixes 
his  seal,  or,  failing  that,  his  signature.  The  proceedings  at  a 
trial  are  all  committed  to  writing,  but  not  always  in  the  actual 
words  used,  as  Japanese  custom  is  averse  to  the  employment  of 
the  colloquial  for  literary  purposes.  The  general  plan  is,  there- 
fore, to  translate  the  gist  of  the  question?  and  answers  into  the 
book  style. 

Needless  to  say  that  the  above  is  the  merest  shadowy  outline 
of  a  vast  subject.  Transformed,  revolutionised  as  it  has  been, 
Japanese  law  nevertheless  retains  not  a   few   curious    features   of 


284  Literature. 

its  own,  which  would  interest  both  the  legal  specialist  and  the 
student  of  history  and  sociology.  In  some  cases  of  compara- 
tively little  importance,  the  customary  lawr  of  an  earlier 
date  is  still  followed,  though  variously  modified  by  the  ap- 
plication, more  or  less  tentative,  of  European  principles  of 
jurisprudence. 

Books  recommended.  J.  H.  Gubbins's  English  translation  of  the  Civil  Code, 
with  the  Japanese  original  on  the  same  page.— J.  E.  de  Becker's  English  translations 
of  the  Codes  of  Civil  and  Criminal  Procedure. — The  official  versions  in  English  of  the 
Commercial  Code,  the  Penal  Code,  and  the  Code  of  Civil  Procedure,  and  in  French  of 
the  Code  of  Criminal  Procedure. — Pamphlets  in  English  by  Dr.  Lonholm  on  the  Civil 
and  Commercial  Codes  — For  an  account  of  the  earlier  or  traditional  law,  may  be 
recommended  Professor  J.  H.  Wigmore's  voluminous  treatise  on  Private  Law  in  Old 
Japan,  printed  in  Vol.  XX.  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions,"  and  Notes  on  Land  Tenure 
and  Local  Institutions  in  Old  Japan,  by  D.  B.  Simmons  and  J.  H.  Wigmore,  in  Vol. 
XIX.  Part  I.  of  the  same.  To  these  may  be  added  R.  Masujima's  paper  On  tJie  Jitsuiti 
err  Japanese  L^gal  Seal,  printed  in  Vol.  XVII.  Part  II.  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions," 
and  Gubbins's  Report  on  Taxation  in  Japan,  with  a  Supplementary  Paper  on  Land 
Tenure. 

Literature.  We  hear  of  one  or  two  Japanese  books  as  having 
been  composed  in  the  seventh  century  of  the  Christian  era,  shortly 
after  the  spread  of  a  knowledge  of  the  Chinese  ideographs  in 
Japan  had  rendered  a  written  literature  possible.  The  earliest 
work,  however,  that  has  come  down  to  us  is  the  Kojiki,  or  "  Record 
of  Ancient  Matters,"  dating  from  the  year  712.  This  has  some- 
times been  called  the  Bible  of  the  Japanese,  because  it  contains 
the  mythology  and  earliest  history  of  the  nation  ;  but  it  gives  no 
moral  or  religious  precepts.  It  was  followed  in  A.D.  720  by 
the  Nihongi,  or  "  Chronicles  of  Japan,"  a  more  pretentious  work 
written  in  Chinese,  the  Latin  of  that  age  and  country.  In  about 
A.D.  760  came  the  Man-yoshu,  or  "  Collection  of  a  Myriad  Leaves." 
It  is  an  anthology  of  the  most  ancient  poems  of  the  language, 
and  is  invaluable  as  a  repertory  of  facts  and  allusions  interesting 
to  the  philologist,  the  archaeologist,  and  the  historian.  Its  poetical 
merit  is  also  rated  very  high  by  the  orthodox  native  critics,  who 
are  unacquainted  with  any  literature  but  their  own,  unless  it  be 
the  Chinese.  From  that  time  forward  the  literary  stream  has 
never  ceased.     It  has  flowed  in  a  double  channel, — that  of  books 


Literature.  285 

in  the  native  language,  and  that  of  books  written  in  Classical 
Chinese.  Chinese  has  been  generally  preferred  for  grave  subjects, 
— law,  for  instance,  and  history  ;  Japanese  for  poetry,  romance, 
and  other  branches  of  belles-lettres.  Sir  Ernest  Satow,  following 
the  native  authorities,  classifies  Japanese  literature  under  sixteen 
heads,  which  are  : 

I.  Standard  Histories.  Besides  the  Kojiki  and  Nihongi 
already  mentioned,  the  most  important  standard  history  is  the 
Dai  Nihonshi.  This  huge  work  in  one  hundred  volumes  was 
compiled  at  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century  by  a  whole 
company  of  Japanese  and  Chinese  men  of  learning,  under  the 
general  superintendence  of  the  second  Prince  of  Mito,  who  was 
a  munificent  patron  of  literature. 

II.  Miscellaneous  Historical  Works,  that  is,  histories  written 
by  private  persons  and  therefore  devoid  of  official  sanction.  Such 
are  the  Mitsu  Kaganii,  the  Gempei  Seisuiki,  the  Heike  Mono-gatart, 
the  Taiheiki,  and  a  host  of  others,  concluding  with  the  Nihoti 
Gwaishi,  which,  a  few  years  ago,  was  in  every  educated  person's 
hands,  and  which,  by  its  fanatically  Imperialist  sentiments, 
contributed  in  no  small  measure  to  bring  about  the  fall  of  the 
Shogunate. — All  Japanese  histories  are  written  in  a  style  which 
repels  the  European  reader.  They  are,  for  the  most  part,  annals 
rather  than  histories  properly  so-called.  Sir  Ernest  Satow's 
translation  of  the  first  five  books  of  the  Nikon  Gwaishi  should  be 
glanced  through  by  any  one  who  doubts  this  assertion.  He  will 
find  it  almost  impossible  to  bring  himself  to  believe  that  a  book 
so  intolerably  dry  could  ever  have  fired  a  whole  nation  with 
enthusiasm.     That  it  did  so  is  one  of  the  curiosities  of  literature. 

III.  Laws.  The  Ryb  no  Gige  and  the  Engi-shiki  are  the 
works  in  this  division  which  are  most  often  quoted. 

IV.  Biography. 

V.     Poetry.     (See  special  Article  on  this  subject.) 
VI.     Classical  Romances.     This  is  the  most  curious  department 
of  standard  Japanese  literature,  lifting,  as   it  does,  the  curtain  from 
the  long-forgotten  life  of  the  Japanese   Court   of  the   tenth   and 


286  Literature. 

eleventh  centuries  of  our  era.  The  lords  and  ladies  of  those 
days  step  out  before  us  with  all  the  frivolity,  but  also  with  all 
the  elegance,  of  their  narrow  aristocratic  existence,  which  was 
bounded  by  the  horizon  of  the  old  capital,  Kyoto.  We  have 
their  poetastering,  their  amorous  intrigues  of  course,  their  inter- 
minable moon-gazings  and  performances  on  the  flute,  even  minute 
descriptions  of  their  dresses  and  of  the  parties  they  gave, — one  among 
various  witnesses  to  the  fact  that  many  of  these  books  were  written 
by  women.  The  earliest  story  commonly  classed  among  the 
romances  is  more  properly  a  fairy-tale ;  for  it  deals  with  the 
adventures  of  a  maiden  who  was  exiled  from  the  moon  to  this 
our  workaday  world.  It  is  entitled  Taketori  Mono-gatari,  or  the 
"  Bamboo-cutter's  Romance,"  because  the  maiden  was  discovered 
in  a  section  of  bamboo,  where  she  lay  sparkling  like  gold.  To 
mention  but  three  or  four  more  out  of  a  hundred,  there  are  the 
Ulsubo  Afono-gatari  and  the  Ise  Mono-galari,  both  attributed  to  the 
tenth  century,  the  Sumiyoshi  Mono-gatari,  of  uncertain  date,  and 
the  Konjaku  Mono-gatari,  with  its  sequel  the  Uji  Shut,  which 
are  collections  of  shorter  tales.  The  most  celebrated  of  all,  is  the 
voluminous  Genji  Mono-gatari,  which  dates  from  the  year  1004. 

VII.  Miscellanies.  These  books  are  a  sort  of  olla  podrida  of 
the  thoughts  of  their  authors,  jotted  down  without  any  attempt 
at  classification,  but  with  a  great  deal  of  literary  chiselling.  The 
two  miscellanies  most  to  be  recommended  are  the  Makura  no 
Soshi,  by  a  Court  lady  named  Sei  Shonagon  who  flourished  in 
the  eleventh  century,  and  the  Tsurezure-Gusa  by  a  Buddhist 
monk  who  died  in  the  year  1350. 

VIII.  Diaries.  Of  these,  the  Hbjoki  is  probably  the  one  which 
the  student  will  find  most  interesting.  Like  the  Tsurezure-Gusa, 
it  is  the  work  of  a  Buddhist  monk.  The  author  describes  the 
calamities  of  his  times,  and  expatiates  on  the  superiority  of  life  in 
a  hermit's  cell  to  that  which  he  had  previously  led  amidst  worldly 
vanities.  It  dates  from  about  the  year  1200.  The  Murasaki 
Shikibu  Niki*  which  is  the  diary  of  the  most  celebrated  of  Japanese 

*  This  word    is    commonly   pronounced  nikki,  but  niki  is  more  ancient  and  correct. 


Literature.  287 

authoresses,  is  remarkable  as  being  probably   the  hardest  book  to 
construe  in  the  Japanese  language. 

IX.  Travels.  Under  this  heading,  the  bibliographers  class 
many  works  which  might  more  advantageously  be  counted  among 
the  Diaries,  as  not  only  are  they  diaries  in  fact,  but  are  so 
entitled  by  their  authors.  The  easiest  and  most  attractive  of  the 
Japanese  classics  is  to  be  found  in  this  division.  It  is  entitled  the 
Tosa  Niki,  that  is,  "  Diary  of  [a  Voyage  Home  from]  Tosa,"  by  the 
poet  Tsurayuki,  who  had  been  governor  of  that  remote  province. 
It  dates  from  the  year  935.  Travels  are  the  least  voluminous 
department  of  Japanese  literature.  How  should  it  accord  with 
the  fitness  of  things  in  this  stay-at-home  country  to  have  a  Sir 
John  Maundeville  or  a  Captain  Cook  ? 

X.  Dramas.  These  are  treated  of  in  the  Article  on  the 
Theatre. 

XL  Dictionaries  and  Works  on  Philology.  The  best  native 
dictionaries  of  Classical  Japanese  are  the  Wakun  no  Shiori  and 
the  Gagen  Shiiran  ;  but  both  are  unfortunately  fragmentary.  The 
recently  published  Genkai,  or  "  Sea  of  Words,"  aud  the  Koioba 
no  Izuml,  or  "  Fountain  of  Words "  aim  at  greater  complete- 
ness. The  fullest  native  grammar  is  the  Koioba  no  Chika?7iichi, 
by  Minamoto-no-Shigetane.  The  chief  writers  of  the  old  school 
on  general  philological  subjects  are  Mabuchi  (died  1769),  Motoori 
(died  1 801),  and  Hirata  (died  1843).  In  Motoori's  works  the 
classical  Japanese  language  reached  its  acme  of  perfection. 
Specially  remarkable  are,  among  his  greater  undertakings,  the 
standard  commentary  on  the  Kojiki,  entitled  Kojiki  Den,  and, 
among  his  lighter  essays,  the  Tama-Gaisuma  containing  jottings 
on  all  sorts  of  subjects,  philological  and  otherwise. 

XII.  Topography.  The  more  popular  publications  of  this  class, 
dating  roughly  from  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century,  are 
really  the  best,  though  they  are  less  esteemed  by  the  Japanese 
literati  than  are  other  works  bearing  the  stamp  of  greater  antiquity. 
These  popular  topographical  works  are  illustrated  guide-books  to 
the  various  provinces  of  the  empire,  and   are  known  under  the 


z88  Literature. 

collective  name  of  Meisho  Zue.  Though  by  various  authors,  they 
are  all  constructed  on  a  uniform  plan,  somewhat  resembling 
that  of  our  county  histories,  though  more  discursive  and  better 
adapted  to  the  practical  needs  of  travellers. 

XIII.  Literature  of  the  Shinto  Religion.  Chief  works  : 
the  Kojiki  Den,  already  mentioned  under  another  heading 
—for  it  is  one  of  the  corner-stones  of  Japanese  literature — 
and  Hirata's  still  only  half-published  magnum  opus,  entitled 
Koshi  Den.  This  latter  is  remarkable  for  its  extraordinary 
elaborateness  and  for  the  vast  erudition  of  its  author.  Un- 
fortunately Hirata  was  very  bigoted  as  well  as  very  learned. 
Consequently  the  reader  must  be  always  on  his  guard,  so  as 
to  distinguish  how  much  really  belongs  to  Shint5  and  how 
much  to  Hirata  himself;  for  Hirata  never  scrupled  to  garble 
a  sacred  text,  if  he  could  thereby  support  his  own  views  as  to 
what  the  sacred  writers  ought  to  mean.  Extremely  interesting 
to  the  specialist  are  the  ancient  Shint5  rituals  termed  Norilo, 
round  which  a  mass  of  modern  commentary  has  gathered.  A 
noteworthy  peculiarity  of  this  section  of  Japanese  literature  is 
the  attempt  made  by  its  authors  to  use  pure  Japanese  only, 
without  any  admixture  of  the  Chinese  element. 

XIV.  Buddhist  Literature.  This  division  comprises  singu- 
larly few  works  of  merit,  Buddhism  having  found  an  uncongenial 
soil  in  the  Japanese  mind.  Certain  sets  of  hymns  {tvasan)  are,  it 
is  true,  favourites  with  the  lower  class  of  devotees  ;  but  we  do 
not  know  of  any  Japanese  Buddhist  book  that  occupies,  either  in 
literature  or  popularity,  a  place  at  all  comparable  to  that  taken 
among  ourselves  by  the  "  Imitation  of  Christ,'"'  the  English 
"  Prayer-Book,"  or  the  "  Pilgrim's  Progress."  Shinto,  though 
immeasurably  inferior  to  Buddhism  as  a  religion,  must  be  admitted 
to  have  carried  off  from  its  rival  all  the  literary  laurels  on 
Japanese  soil.  Besides  the  Buddhists  proper,  there  is  a  school 
of  moralists  calling  themselves  Shingakusha,  founded  partly  on 
Buddhism,  partly  on  Confucianism,  partly  on  utilitarian  common- 
sense.       Some   of   their   Dozva,    or    "  Moral    Discourses,''    which 


Literature.  289 

date  from  the  first  half  of  the  nineteenth  century,  offer  a 
certain  interest  But  the  best  things  in  this  line  are  two  small 
collections  of  moral  aphorisms  entitled  Jilsu-go  Kyo,  or 
"  Teaching  of  the  Words  of  Truth,"  and  Doji  Kyo,  or  "  Teaching 
for  Children." 

XV.  Modern  Fiction.  Japan's  greatest  modern  novelist,  in  the 
opinion  of  the  Japanese  themselves,  is  Bakin  (1767-1848),  the 
most  widely  popular  of  whose  two  hundred  and  ninety  works  is  the 
Hak-ken  Den,  or  "  Tale  of  Eight  Dogs,"  itself  consisting  of  no  less 
than  a  hundred  and  six  volumes.  Though  Japanese  volumes  are 
smaller  than  ours,  the  Hak-ken  Den  is  a  gigantic  production.  Other 
universally  popular  novels  of  the  earlier  part  of  the  nineteenth 
century  are  the  Ukiyo-buro,  by  Samba,  and  the  Hiza  Kurige,  by 
an  author  who  writes  under  the  name  of  Jippensha  Ikku.  In  our 
opinion  this  latter  is,  with  some  of  the  lyric  dramas  (No  no  Utai), 
the  cleverest  outcome  of  the  Japanese  pen.  In  it  are  related  with 
a  Rabelaisian  coarseness,  but  also  with  a  Rabelaisian  verve  and 
humour,  the  adventures  of  two  men  called  Yajirobei  and  Kidahachi 
as  they  travel  along  the  Tokaido  from  Yedo  to  Kyoto.  The  im- 
pecunious heroes  walk  most  of  the  way,  whence  the  title  of  Hiza 
Kurige,  which  may  be  roughly  rendered  "  Shanks'  Mare."  The 
author  of  this  work  occupies  in  literature  a  place  akin  to  that  which 
Hokusai  occupies  in  art.  Warmly  appreciated  by  the  common 
people,  who  have  no  preconceived  theories  to  live  up  to,  both 
Hokusai  and  Jippensha  Ikku  are  admitted  but  grudgingly  by  the 
local  dispensers  of  fame  to  a  place  in  the  national  Walhalla.  They 
must  look  abroad  for  the  appreciation  of  critics  taking  a  wider  view 
of  the  proper  functions  of  literature  and  art.  Gravity,  severe  clas- 
sicism, conformity  to  established  rules  and  methods, — such  qualities 
still  constitute  the  canon  of  orthodox  Japanese  literary  judgment. 
Many  Japanese  novels  are  of  the  historical  kind.  The  most 
interesting  of  these  is  the  I-ro-ha  Bunko,  by  one  Tamenaga 
Shunsui,  which,  with  its  sequel,  the  Yuki  no  Akebono,  gives  the 
lives  of  each  of  the  celebrated  Forty-seven  Ronins.  The  Ooka 
Meiyo  Seidan  is  another  book  of  this   class,  much  to   be  recom- 


290  Literature. 

mended  to  the  student  for  its  interest  and  its  easy  style.  It  pur- 
ports to  be  an  authentic  account  of  numbers  of  causes  celebres  tried 
by  Ooka,  the  Japanese  Solomon,  who  flourished  early  in  the 
eighteenth  century. 

XVI.  Miscellaneous  Literature,  including  cyclopaedias, 
works  on  industries,  sciences,  arts,  and  inventions,  works  on  Con- 
fucianism, works  on  Japanese  and  Chinese  antiquities,  and  on  a 
hundred  other  subjects.  Under  this  heading,  the  popular  moral 
treatises  of  Kaibara  Ekken  and  Arai  Hakuseki,  Confucianists  of 
the  seventeenth  century,  call  for  particular  notice,  partly  because 
their  ideas  are  those  that  long  moulded  Japanese  society,  partly 
because  the  easy,  flowing  style  of  these  books  specially  fits  them 
for  the  student's  use. 

To  the  foregoing  enumeration,  borrowed  from  Sir  Ernest  Satow, 
one  item  more  can  now  be  added,  namely  : — ■ 

XVII.  Europeanised  Literature.  The  opening  of  the  country 
was  the  death-blow  to  Japanese  literature  proper.  True,  thousands 
of  books  and  pamphlets  still  pour  annually  from  the  press — more, 
probably,  than  at  any  previous  time.  But  the  greater  number 
are  either  translations  of  European  works,  or  else  works  con- 
veying European  ideas.  From  "  Mrs.  Caudle "  up  to  Captain 
Mahan,  nothing  is  amissing.  It  is  but  natural  and  right  that  this 
should  be  so.  Immense  civilising  effects  in  every  department  of 
intellectual  activity  have  been  produced  by  the  contemporary  school 
of  Europeanised  authors,  with  Fukuzawa,  Kato,  and  a  dozen  other 
eminent  men  leading  the  van.  But  of  course  their  translations, 
adaptations,  and  imitations  can  interest  Western  readers,  who  are 
in  possession  of  the  originals,  far  less  than  do  the  books  written 
under  the  old  order ;  besides  which,  by  the  very  nature  of 
the  case,  most  of  their  handiwork  is  provisional  only.  Some  of 
these  days,  when  the  life-time  of  competent  scholars  shall  have 
been  given  to  the  task,  Shakespeare  and  Victor  Hugo  may  pos- 
sibly be  rendered  into  Japanese  not  much  more  unsatisfactorily 
than  we  render  Homer  into  English.  In  their  present  hastily 
donned  Japanese  dress,  they  send  a   cold   shiver  down  one's  back. 


Literature.  291 

No  department  but  has  yielded  to  the  new  influence.  Even 
Japanese  novel-writers  nowadays  draw  their  inspiration  from 
abroad.  The  first  European  novel  to  be  translated  was  (of  all 
books  in  the  world  ! )  Bulwer  Lytton's  "  Ernest  Mai  tra  vers,"  which 
appeared  in  1879,  under  the  title  of  Kwaryu  Shunwa,  literally, 
'•'A  Spring  Story  of  Flowers  and  Willows."  The  most  successful 
perhaps  in  recent  years,  among  publications  of  this  class,  has 
been  the  version  of  "  Little  Lord  Fauntleroy."  *  Paraphrase  is 
frequently  resorted  to  : — a  plot  is  borrowed,  and  the  proper  names 
which  occur  in  it  are  slightly  Japonised,  as  Shimizu  for  Smith, 
O  Risa  for  Eliza,  and  details  altered  to  suit  Japanese  social 
conditions.  The  first  original  novel  of  Japanese  life  composed 
in  imitation  of  the  European  style  was  the  Shosei  Katagi,  by 
Tsubouchi  Yuzo  (1886),  who  seems  to  have  put  into  it  his  own 
experiences  as  a  student.  Sometimes  a  more  ambitious  kind  of 
historical  romance  is  attempted.  We  would  willingly  wager  ten  • 
thousand  to  one  that  not  a  single  reader  of  these  pages  could 
ever  guess  the  hero  of  a  work  which  for  several  years  enjoyed 
such  popularity  that  its  author,  Yano  Fumio,  was  able  to  take  a 
trip  to  Europe  and  to  build  himself  a  fine  house  with  the  proceeds. 
The  hero  is — Epaminondas  !  The  work  in  question,  entitled  Kei- 
kohi  Bidan,  takes  the  whole  field  of  Theban  politics  for  its 
subject-matter.  That  not  a  few  of  the  allusions  might  be  trans- 
ferred without  much  difficulty  to  contemporary  Japanese  politics, 
Mas  doubtless  one  reason  for  the  immense  sale  which  it  had. 
Another  successful  novel,  the  Kajin  no  Kigu,  has  its  opening 
scene  laid  in  the  Capitol  at  Washington,  where  one  of  the 
characters  —  a  Japanese— reads  aloud  to  his  companion  the 
Declaration  of  Independence.  The  Carlists,  the  wicked  English 
who  robbed  Egypt  of  her  native  prince  Arabi  Pasha,  etc.,  etc., 
all    appear   in   kaleidoscopic   variety   in  the  pages   of  this  work, 

*  When  Mrs.  Iwamoto,  the  accomplished  translator  of  this  novel,  died,  copies  of  her 
works,  of  all  the;  Tokyo  newspapers  published  on  the  day  of  her  funeral,  and  of  recent 
magazines  and  other  books  were  buried  with  her,  every  care  being  taken  to  guard 
against  decay,  and  thus  preserve  intact  for  future  ages  specimens  of  the  literary  activity 
of  the  present  reign. 


292  Literature. 

which  by  a  curious  contradiction,  is  written  in  the  most  classical 
Chinese  style.  Sometimes  the  future  is  peered  into,  after  the 
example  of  Lytton  and  the  author  of  "The  Battle  of  Dorking." 
In  1895,  while  Japan  was  busy  beating  China,  and  had  convinced 
herself  that  she  could  beat  the  world,  one  of  the  Toky5  papers 
achieved  a  success  by  the  publication  of  a  serial  noved  entitled 
Asahi-Zahira,  by  a  feuilletonist  called  Murai  Gensai.  The 
heroines  of  this  book  were  two  Red  Cross  nurses,  and  the  story  was 
that  of  the  coming  defeat  of  England  by  Japan,  who,  after  annex- 
ing Hongkong,  India,  Malta,  and  Gibraltar,  sends  her  fleet  up 
the  Thames  to  raze  the  fortresses  there  and  to  exact  from  the 
cowering  Britishers  an  enormous  indemnity. 

The  favourite  novelists  of  the  present  day  are  Rohan,  a  subjec- 
tive, introspective  writer,  and  Tokutomi  Roka,  whose  Omoi-de  no 
Ki  and  Holotogisu  may  be  particularly  recommended  to  the  foreign 
student  for  their  good  colloquial  style.  Aeba  Koson's  short 
stories,  collected  under  the  title  of  Muratake,  are  also  much  read. 
So  are  the  works  of  the  realist  Koyo  Sanjin,  who  died  in  1903. 
The  European  influence  in  most  such  modern  prose-writers  affects 
not  only  the  choice  and  treatment  of  the  subject-matter,  but  the 
very  style  and  grammar.  Even  when  perusing  an  original  pro- 
duction, one  might  often  take  it  for  a  translation,  so  saturated  is 
it  apt  to  be  with  "  Europeanisms."  An  effort  was  made  a  few 
years  ago  to  Europeanise  even  poetry,  by  the  introduction  of 
rhyme  and  by  other  innovations ;  but  the  genius  of  the  language 
proving  essentially  unsuitable,  the  attempt  failed.  After  all,  if 
poetry  is  to  be  started  on  a  new  flight,  the  first  prerequisite  would 
be  an  original  poet,  and  that  is  precisely  what  was  and  still  is 
lacking.  Sasaki  Nobutsuna  may  be  mentioned  as  the  most  attract- 
ive of  contemporary  writers  of  verse.  Though  he  adheres  to  the 
old  thirty-one  syllable  form, — is,  in  fact,  thoroughly  Japanese  and 
a  conservator  of  the  past, — still  he  has  contrived  to  infuse  some 
measure  of  new  vigour  into  the  volume  of  his  selected  best  pieces 
entitled  Omoi-gusa,  published  in  1903. 

Among  more  serious  and  influential  modern  productions  may 


Literature. 


2  93 


be  mentioned  The  Opening  of  Japan,1  by  Shimada  Saburo ;  The 
History  of  Two  Thousand  Five  Hundred  Years,2  by  Takekoshi 
Yosaburo  ;  The  History  of  the  Tokugawa  Shoguns,3  by  Naito 
Chiso ;  The  Decline  and  Fall  of  Feu  I at  ism, ^  by  Fukuchi  Gen- 
ichiro  ;  The  Japan  of  the  Future*  by  Tokutomi  Iichiro,  and  the 
same  author's  Life  and  Opinions  of  Yoshida  Shoin  ;6  A  Treatise 
on  the  Constitution,'1  by  Ono  Azusa ;  the  Constitution  itself,  with 
Marquis  Itos  Commentary  (see  p.  219);  Nakamura's  excellent 
translation  of  Smiles'  Self-Help, 8  together  with  such  more  recent 
scholastic  works  as  Mikami  and  Takatsu's  History  of  Japanese 
Literature*  two  great  dictionaries,  namely,  Otsuki's  Sea  of  Words,10 
and  Ochiai's  Fountain  of  Words,11  Takahashi  Goro's  excellent 
Japanese-English  dictionary,12  Taguchi's  encyclopaedia  entitled 
A  Dictionary  of  Japanese  Society,13  Tsubouchi  Yuzo's  History  of 
English  Literature1*  and  Kuroiwa's  work  on  monism  entitled  A 
Treatise  on  Heaven  and  Man.15  But  the  work  which  undoubtedly 
did  more  than  any  other  single  factor  to  mould  Japan  into  its 
present  shape  was  The  Condition  of  Western  Countries1*  by  Fuku- 
zawa — a  book  now  thirty  years  old.  The  reception  accorded  to 
the  same  author's  "  Hundred  Essays,"17  published  in  1897,  showed 
his  popularity  to  be  as  fresh  as  ever;  and  his  Autobiography191 
which  appeared  in  1899,  has  since  then  passed  through  thirty-four 
editions,  and  is,  in  the  present,  writer's  opinion,  one  of  the  most 
interesting  books  in  the  Japanese  language.  The  fact  that  it  is 
written  in  colloquial  should  facilitate  its  perusal  by  foreign 
students. 

And  now  it  may  be  asked  :  What  is  the  value  of  this  Japanese 


(1) 

Kaikoku  Skimatsu. 

(10)   Genkai. 

(2) 

Ni-sen   Go-hyaku  Nen 

Shi. 

(11)  Kotoba  no  Izumi. 

(3) 

Tokugawa  fit-go-dai 

Shi. 

(12)  I~ro-ha  Jiten. 

(4) 

Baku  fit  Suibo  Ron. 

(13)  Ni/ton  Shakwai  Jii. 

(5) 

Sfiorai  no  Nihon. 

(14)  Eibun-gaku  Shi. 

(6) 

Yoshida  Shoin. 

(15)   Ten-jin  Ron. 

(7) 

Kokkcn  Hanron. 

(16)  Seiyo  y'jo. 

(8) 

Saikofat  Risshi  Hen. 

(17)  Fukuo  Hyaku-iva. 

(9) 

Nihon  Bungaku  S'ii. 

(18)  Fukud  Jiden. 

294  Literature. 

-literature — so  ancient,  so  voluminous,  locked  up  in  so  recondite 
a  written  character?  We  repeat  what  we  have  already  said  of 
the  "Collection  of  a  Myriad  Leaves/'"— that  it  is  invaluable  to 
the  philologist,  the  archaeologist,  the  historian,  the  student  of 
curious  manners  which  have  disappeared  or  are  fast  disappearing. 
We  may  add  that  there  are  some  clever  and  many  pretty  things  in 
it.  The  Tosa  Niki,  for  instance,  is  charming — charming  in  its 
simplicity,  its  good  taste,  its  love  of  scenery  and  of  children.  The 
Mahira  no  Soshi  teems  with  touches  of  wit  and  delicate  satire. 
Several  of  the  lyric  dramas  are  remarkable  poems  in  their  way. 
Some  of  the  Lilliputian  odes  in  the  "Songs  Ancient  and  Modern'' 
sparkle  like  dew-drops  in  the  sun ;  and  of  Basho's  still  tinier  poems 
— the  wee  seventeen  syllable  mites — many  are  flashes  of  delicate 
fancy,  atoms  of  perfect  naturalistic  description,  specks  of  humour 
truth,  or  wisdom.  For  Jippensha  Ikku,  the  Rabelais  of  Japan,  we 
have  already  expressed  our  warm  admiration.  Not  a  few  of  the 
writers  of  the  present  reign  would,  if  born  under  other  skies,  have 
taken  a  respectable  rank  among  European  litterateurs.  On  the 
other  hand,  much  of  that  which  the  Japanese  themselves  prize  most 
highly  in  their  literature  seems  intolerably  flat  and  insipid  to  the 
European  taste.  The  romances — most  of  them — are  every  bit  as 
dull  as  the  histories,  though  in  another  way  :— the  histories  are  too 
curt,  the  romances  too  long-winded.  If  the  authoress  of  the  Genji 
Mono-galari,  though  lauded  to  the  skies  by  her  compatriots,  has 
been  branded  by  Georges  Bousquet  as  cette  cnnuyeuse  Scudiry 
japonaise,  she  surely  richly  deserves  it.*  And  what  shall  we  say 
of  Bakin,  on  whom  her  mantle  fell  in  modern  times, — Bakin  and 
his  Hakken  Den,  which  every  Japanese  has  read  and  re-read  till 


*  Sir  Ernest  Satow's  judgment  of  the  Genji  Jlono-gatari  agrees  with  ours.  "  The 
plot,"  writes  he,  "  is  devoid  of  interest,  and  it  is  only  of  value  as  marking  a  stage  in 
the  development  of  the  language."  Fairness,  however,  requires  that  the  very  different 
estimate  of  this  work  formed  by  Mr.  Aston,  the  accomplished  historian  of  Japanese 
literature,  should  he  here  cited.     He  writes  as  follows: — 

"  I  do  not  profess  to  have  read  more  than  a  small  part  of  this  portentously  long 
romance,  but  judging  from  a  study  of  a  few  books  of  it,  the  above  condemnations 'appear 
to  me  undeserved.       The  ornate    style    to    which    these   adverse   critics    object  consists 


Literature. 


295 


he  knows  it  almost  by  heart  ?  "  How  inimitable  !  "  cries  the 
enraptured  Japanese  reader,  "  how  truly  excellent !  "  "  Excellent, 
yes  !  "  the  European  retorts,  "  excellent  to  send  one  to  sleep,  with 
its  interminable  accounts  of  the  impossible  adventures  of  eight 
knights,  who  personify  the  eight  cardinal  virtues  through  the 
labyrinth  of  a  hundred  and  six  volumes  !  " 

Sum  total  :  what  Japanese  literature  most  lacks  is  genius.  It 
lacks  thought,  logical  grasp,  depth,  breadth,  and  many-sidedness. 
It  is  too  timorous,  too  narrow  to  compass  great  things.  Perhaps 
the  Court  atmosphere  and  predominantly  feminine  influence  in 
which  it  was  nursed  for  the  first  few  centuries  of  its  existence 
stifled    it,    or    else    the    fault    may    have    lain    with    the   Chinese 

chiefly  in  the  honorific  terminations  of  the  verbs,  as  natural  to  a  courtly  dialect  as  the 
gorgeous  but  cumbrous  costumes  and  the  elaborate  ceremonial  of  the  palace.  There  is  no 
superabundance  of  descriptive  adjectives  or  anything  to  correspond  to  our  word-painting. 
The  want  of  interest  complained  of  seems  to  me  to  proceed  from  a  misunderstanding  of 
the  writer's  object.  She  was  not  bent  on  producing  a  highly  wrought  plot  or  sensa- 
tional story.  Her  object  was  to  interest  and  amuse  her  readers  by  a  pictwe  of  real  life, 
and  of  the  sentiments  and  doings  of  actual  men  and  women.  There  is  no  exaggeration 
in  the  Genji,  no  superfine  morality,  and  none  of  the  fine  writing  that  abounds  in  modern 
Japanese  fiction.  What  Murasaki-no-Shikibu  did  for  Japanese  literature  was  to  add  to 
it  a  new  kind  of  composition,  viz.  the  novel,  or  epic,  of  real  life  as  it  has  been  called. 
She  was  the  Richardson  of  Japan,  and  her  genius  resembled  his  in  many  ways.  She 
delighted  specially  in  delineating  types  of  womanhood.  Indeed,  the  whole  work  may 
be  regarded  as  a  series  of  pictures  of  this  kind,  drawn  with  minute  care,  and  from  a 
full  knowledge  of  her  subject-matter.  She  does  not  deal  in  broad  strokes  of  the  pen. 
Her  method  is  to  produce  graphic  and  realistic  effects  by  numerous  touches  of  detail. 
This  is,  however,  incompatible  with  simplicity  of  style.  Her  sentences  are  long  and 
somewhat  complicated,  and  this  with  the  antique  language  and  the  differences  of 
manners  and  customs  constitutes  a  very  serious  difficulty  to  the  student.  The  Genji  is 
not  an  easy  book  either  to  us  or  to  the  author's  modern  fellow-countrymen.  The  labour 
of  mastering  its  meaning  is  probably  one  reason  why  it  is  not  more  appreciated.  As  a 
picture  of  a  long  past  state  of  society,  there  is  nothing  in  the  contemporary  European 
literature  which  can  for  a  moment  be  compared  with  it.  It  contains  a  host  of  person- 
ages from  Mikados  down  to  the  lowest  court  attendants,  to  elucidate  whose  genealogy 
the  standard  Kogetsusho  edition  has  devoted  a  whole  volume.  Its  scene  is  laid  sometimes 
in  Kyoto,  but  also  changes  to  Hiyeizan,  Suma,  and  other  places  in  the  neighbourhood. 
A  whole  calendar  of  court  ceremonies  might  be  compiled  from  it.  If  we  remember 
that  it  was  written  long  before  Chaucer,  Dante,  and  Boccaccio  shone  on  the  horizon  of 
European  literature,  it  will  appear  a  truly  remarkable  performance."  (This  quotation 
is  made,  not  from  the  History  of  Japanese  Literature  itself,  but  from  a  preliminary 
essay  entitled  The  Classical  Literature  of  Japan,  read  before  the  Japan  Society,  London, 
in  June,   1898.) 


296  Living. 

formalism  in  which  it  grew  up.  But  we  suspect  that  there  was 
some  original  sin  of  weakness  as  well.  Otherwise  the  clash  of 
India  and  China  with  old  mythological  Japan,  of  Buddhism  with 
Shint5,  of  imperialism  with  feudalism,  and  of  all  with  Catholicism 
in  the  sixteenth  century  and  with  Dutch  ideas  a  little  later,  would 
have  produced  more  important  results.  If  Japan  has  given  us  no 
music,  so  also  has  she  given  us  no  immortal  verse,  neither  do  her 
authors  atone  for  lack  of  substance  by  any  special  beauties  of  form. 
But  Japanese  literature  has  occasional  graces,  and  is  fall  of 
incidental  scientific  interest.  The  intrepid  searcher  for  facts  and 
"  curios "  will,  therefore,  be  rewarded  if  he  has  the  courage  to 
devote  to  it  the  study  of  many  years.  A  certain  writer  has  said 
that  "it  should  be  left  to  a  few  missionaries  to  plod  their  way 
through  the  wilderness  of  the  Chinese  language  to  the  deserts  of 
Chinese  literature."  Such  a  sweeping  condemnation  is  unjust  in 
the  case  of  Chinese.  It  would  be  unjust  in  that  of  Japanese  also, 
even  with  all  deductions  made. 

Books  recommended.  A  History  of  Japanese  Literature,  by  W.  G.  Aston.  The 
Asiatic  Transactions,  both  English  and  German,  passim,  for  a  variety  of  translations 
and  summaries  including  (of  works  mentioned  in  the  foregoing  article)  the  Kojiki,  the 
Nihongi,  portions  of  the  Man-yoshu,  the  Sumiyoshi  Mono- gat ari,  selections  from  the 
Uji  Slid,  the  Hojoki,  the  Tosa  Niki,  and  most  of  the  Norito. — The  Monthly  Summary 
of  Current  Japanese  Literature  in  the  "Japan  Mail"  newspaper. — A  Geschichte  der 
Jaf>anischen  Literatztr,  by  Prof.  K.  Florenz,  is  in  process  'of  publication.  The  largest 
Japanese  library  accessible  to  the  public  is  the  Teikoku  Tosho-kwan  in  Tokyo.  The 
library  of  the  Imperial  University  of  Tokyo  is  also  extensive;  the  collection  formed  by 
Max  Midler  was  added  to  it  in  1901.  Both  these,  however,  are  eclipsed  by  the  library 
attached  to  the  Imperial  Cabinet,  which  is  said  to  contain  170,000  Japanese,  and  370,000 
Chinese  volumes,  and  to  include  many  Chinese  works  no   longer  extant  in  China  itself. 

Little  Spring.  Ko-haru,  or  "the  Little  Spring,"  is  the 
Japanese  name  for  the  Indian  Summer, — those  beauteous  weeks  in 
November  and  December,  when  the  burden  and  heat  of  the  year 
are  over,  when  the  sky  is  constantly  blue  and  the  atmosphere 
golden,  and  the  maple-trees  (to  borrow  a  favourite  expression  of 
the  Japanese  poets)  put  on  their  damask  robes. 

Living  used  to  be  extremely  cheap  in  Japan.  It  is  so  no 
longer.     The    general    voice    of   grumblers    among   the  residents 


Living.  297 

proclaims  that  it  nowadays  costs  as  much  to  live  here  in  exile 
as  at  home  in  Europe,  with  the  additional  drawback  that  you 
get  less  for  your  money,  except  it  be  comparative  ease  of  mind 
in  the  matter  of  servants.  Grumblers  among  the  tourists  give 
vent  to  complaints  of  similar  tenour.  Travelling  in  Japan,  they 
allege,  is  as  expensive  as  in  America,  and  infinitely  less  com- 
fortable. To  our  mind  the  question,  so  far  as  travellers  are 
concerned,  really  reduces  itself  to  this  : — are  you  willing  to  forego 
some  of  your  home  conveniences,  are  you  willing  to  spend 
money,  in  order  to  study  a  unique  civilisation  in  one  of  its  most 
interesting  phases  ?  If  not,  if  your  object  in  coming  abroad  is 
to  find  or  make  everything  exactly  the  same  as  at  home,  then 
you  have  miscalculated. 

Statistics  published  towards  the  end  of  1900  showed  the 
average  prices  of  the  forty  principal  staples  of  Japanese  produc- 
tion to  have  advanced  forty-two  per  cent,  between  the  years  1896 
and  1899  alone.  This  extraordinarily  rapid  rise  was  ascribed  by 
the  then  Minister  of  Finance  to  inflation  consequent  on  the 
successful  war  against  China  in  1894-5.  Doubtless  that  was 
one  cause.  Side  issues  branching  out  from  it  may  be  discovered 
in  the  doubling  of  the  personnel  of  the  army  which  was  then 
commenced,  and  which,  while  taking  away  hands  from  produc- 
tion, added  idle  mouths.  Furthermore,  the  emigration  of  artisans 
and  coolies  to  Formosa  contributed  to  a  rise  of  wages  in  Japan 
proper,  and  may  have  affected  prices  in  other  ways ;  for  so  potent 
a  cause  cannot  have  remained  without  far-reaching  results.  Be 
this  as  it  may,  and  without  attempting  to  treat  the  question 
exhaustively,  but  merely  mentioning  a  few  items  at  haphazard, 
we  note  that  the  price  of  land  in  Tokyo  trebled  during  the  last 
four  or  five  years  of  the  nineteenth  century,  that  house  rent  has 
trebled  during  the  last  thirty  years  (for  the  very  poor  it  has 
quintupled),  that  the  average  price  of  labour  has  trebled,  that 
hotel  charges  have  trebled,  washing  has  nearly  doubled,  jinrikisha 
hire  has  quadrupled,  and  that  it  costs  three  times  as  much  to 
build    a   house   now   as    it    did    then.     University    students,   who 


n 

se# 

8 

stv/ 

28 

sen 

7* 

sen 

3 

sen 

25 

sen 

75 

sen 

7 

sen 

298  Living. 

formerly  got  along  on  1 1  yen  a  month,  can  scarcely  now  manage 
under  20  yen.  The  price  of  a  box  for  the  ten  days'  wrestling 
matches  at  Eko-in,  Tokyo,  rose  from  40  to  54  yen  for  the  best 
places,  and  from  38  to  45  yen  for  the  next  best  in  the  single 
year  between  January,  1900,  and  January,  1901.  The  published 
accounts  of  a  Tokyo  lady's  household  testify  to  the  following 
rise  in  prices  between  the  years  1877  and  1900  : — 
Public  bath  7     tin  * 

Potatoes   (per  quart)  3^  sen 

Charcoal  (per  bag)  18     sen 

Radishes  (per  bundle)  4J  scn 

Paper  (per  quire)  i^-sen 

do.     (best)  11     sen 

Pickled  greens  (per  barrel)         4 1     sen 
Indoor  sandals    (per  pair)  5     sen 

Lamp  oil  (vegetable)  3     sen  5^jsen 

Best  soy  (per  barrel)         1 yen  1 2^-  sen  2  yen  80     sen 

Firewood  (per  50  bundles)   \  yen  50  sen  2  yen  80     sen 

Maidservant  per  month   1  yen  Over  2  yen 

Carpenter  (per  diem)  25     sen  So     sen 

The    only    household  requisites    that    had     become     cheaper, 
according  to  the  same  authority,  during  the  quarter  century  were 
Lamp  chimneys  12     sen  5     sen 

Petroleum  (per  tin)  2  yen  40  sen  1  yen  70     sen 

owing,  doubtless,  to  the  discovery  of  native  petroleum  fields,  and 
to  the  fact  that  glass  is  now  manufactured  at  Tokyo  instead  of 
being  imported,  as  formerly,  from  abroad. 

All  the  above  statements  as  to  prices  are  endorsed  by  another 
notable  housewife  whom  we  have  consulted,  and.  who  points  out 
that  a  further  considerable  rise  has  taken  place  even  between 
.1900  and  1904  in  certain  articles, — soy,  for  instance,  which  now 
stands  as  high  as  3  yen  75  sen  per  barrel,  charcoal  which  is  50 
sen  as  against  28,  maidservants'  wages  which  now  range  between 

*  For  this  and  the  other  values  mentioned,  see  p.  109. 


Living.  299 

3  and  5  yen  monthly,  and  carpenters'  pay  which  is  1  yen  a  day. 
In  others,  the  rise  is  very  slight : — thus,  vegetable  oil  costs  6  sen 
in  1904  as  against  5yL-  sen  in  1900.  The  same  lady  contributes 
the  following  comparative  list  for  the  last  twenty-nine  years  : — 

(i875)  (i9°4) 


Ladies'  hairdressing                       5 

sen 

10     sen 

„        clogs*                              80 

sen 

3  yen  So     sen 

Kitchen  maids'  ditto                    5 

sen 

2  2     sen 

Eggs                        from  5  rin  to  i-J- 

sen 

3  to  3  J  sen 

Chickens  (per  lb.)                         6 

sen 

S3     s™ 

Sake  (good)                                 25 

sen 

70    sen 

Sugar  (per  lb.)                               8 

sen 

1 6     sen 

Mats  (/a/ami)                                65 

sen 

3  y** 

Matting  {goza,  6  ft.  piece)         16 

sen 

50     sen 

A  quarter  of  a  century  ago,  the  native 

traveller  who  sat  down  to 

rest  awhile  and  sip  a  cup  of  tea  at  a  w 

ayside 

teahouse,  bestowed, 

on  departing,   what   was    called    a   tempo  sen 

that  is,    8    rin    of 

modern  money,  or  less  than  an  English  farth 

ing.     He  now  gives 

5  sen,  and  if  well-dressed,   10  sen,  that  is,  two-pence  half-penny, 
or  twelve  and  a  half  times  as  much  as  formerly. 

If  the  whole  subject  were  to  be  discussed  in  detail,  it  would 
be  proper  to  draw  attention  to  the  fact  that  previous  to  1897  the 
standard  currency  of  Japan  was  silver,  which  had  steadily  depre- 
ciated in  value  during  a  long  term  of  years  as  compared  with 
gold.  To  state  the  case  more  fully  still,  however,  it  would  be 
proper  to  draw  attention  to  the  further  fact  that,  as  the  Japanese 
public  had  practically  never  known  gold,  the  depreciation  of 
silver  as  measured  by  foreigners  in  gold  had  for  them  no  actuality. 
Moreover,  prices  have  risen  continuously  and  rapidly  even  since 
the  introduction  of  the  gold  standard,  as  exemplified  in  some  of 
the  items  above  quoted.  Standards  and  bi-  and  monometallisms 
have,  therefore,  little  to  do  with  the  case.  Prices  have  risen 
absolutely,  and  they  go  on  rising  daily,  quite  irrespective,    too, 

*  Part  of  this  extraordinary  rise  is  accounted  for  by  the  fact  that  the  present   articlo 
is  a  better  and  more  luxurious  one. 


3oo  Living. 

of  any  increased  demands  on  comfort  by  the  people  at  large. 
True,  all  classes  now  display  a  somewhat  greater  inclination 
towards  expensive  habits  than  of  old.  But  the  change  has  been 
slow  and  comparatively  slight, — nowise  equal  in  magnitude  to  the 
political  change,  nor  yet  equal  to  that  general  rush  for  luxury 
which  has  revolutionised  the  whole  life  and  manners  of  the 
agricultural  and  artisan  classes  in  England  during  the  last  two 
generations.  Speaking  generally  and  subject  to  certain  reservations 
of  detail,  the  Japanese  peasant  or  artisan  of  to-day  lives  as  he 
always  lived, — inhabits  the  same  sort  of  wood  and  paper  house, 
eats  the  same  light  food,  wears  the  same  garments,  goes  about  his 
daily  avocations  and  his  occasional  amusements  in  the  same 
manner. 

The  constantly  increasing  price  of  living  weighs  heavily  on 
persons  having  small  incomes  or  fixed  salaries, — very  heavily,  for 
instance,  on  all  the  lower  officials.  If,  nevertheless,  the  shops 
lack  not  customers,  and  the  theatres,  though  expensive,  are 
always  crowded,  the  reason  lies  in  the  rapid  development  of  a 
class  hitherto  unknown, — an  upper  middle  class  of  contractors, 
speculators,  bankers,  mine-owners,  railway  magnates.  At  its  head 
stand  such  nouveaux  riches  as  the  Iwasakis,  the  Shibusawas,  the 
Okuras,  the  Furukawas,  for  whom  the  feudal  society  of  Old  Japan 
would  have  had  no  place. 

Logic  in  the  Far  East  works  by  laws  differing  appreciably 
from  those  which  the  Western  mind  acknowledges.  We  have 
quoted  in  another  part  of  this  volume  the  recent  decision  of  a 
learned  judge,  who  ruled  that  a  firm  which  had  imitated  the 
registered  label  of  a  brand  of  mineral  water  need  not  be  restrained 
from  so  doing,  because,  as  it  was  winter  time,  few  persons  would 
be  drinking  water,  and  the  proprietor  of  the  label  did  not  there- 
fore stand  to  lose  much  by  the  theft.  We  must  allow  a  quantum 
of  sense  in  this  decision  : — it  is  not  altogether  unreasonable.  At 
the  same  time,  the  sense  is  not  that  to  which  our  Western  reason 
would  lead  us.     Four  or  five  years  ago,  the  postmen  of  a  certain 


Logic.  301 

district  complained  of  getting  no  promotion  after  long  and  faithful 
service.  Their  claim  was  found  just  and  was  acceded  to,  each 
man  being  granted  one  step  upwards.  At  the  same  time,  however, 
the  salary  of  each  grade  was  reduced  to  what  that  of  the  grade 
next  below  it  had  hitherto  been,  so  that  in  reality  the  men  gained 
nothing.  In  such  circumstances,  Europeans  would  have  protested 
that  insult  had  been  added  to  injury  ;  but  it  is  not  recorded 
that  the  Japanese  concerned  evinced  any  discontent.  About  the 
same  time,  an  old-established  hotel  in  one  of  the  largest  cities 
of  the  empire  was  burnt  down.  With  us,  permission  to  rebuild 
would  have  been  granted  at  once  (supposing  any  permission  to 
be  necessary)  : — the  fact  that  the  proprietor  had  carried  on  business 
successfully  during  a  long  term  of  years,  would  have  been  deemed 
the  best  of  all  reasons  for  encouraging  him  to  continue.  Not  so 
in  Japan.  The  municipality  held  that  he  had  made  plenty  of 
money  already,  and  that  the  other  hotels  in  the  place,  which 
had  found  in  him  a  dangerous  competitor,  should  be  given  a 
chance.  Permission  was,  therefore,  refused  for  more  than  a 
twelvemonth,  and  when  at  last  granted,  it  was  accompanied  with 
vexatious  conditions.  Here  again  we  see  the  action  of  reason  of 
a  certain  kind,  and  also  a  jealous  regard  of  a  certain  kind  for 
the  rights  of  others  ;  but  the  eye  with  which  this  regard  and  this 
reason  view  the  matter  appears  to  a  European  to  squint.  What 
would  he  say  to  the  report  published  in  1899  by  the  directors 
of  a  certain  brewery  company  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Yokohama, 
wherein  an  item  of  5,000 yen  for  advertising  was  entered  as  an 
asset?  ( ! )  These  clever  folks  were  but  looking  ahead  ;  their 
prophetic  soul  viewed  as  an  already  accomplished  fact  the  increase 
to  their  business  which  such  advertising  would  produce,  and  they 
passed  the  5,000 yen  to  the  credit  side  accordingly.  On  another 
occasion,  the  manager  of  a  Japanese  insurance  company  applied 
to  an  English  expert  for  advice  on  the  state  of  the  firm,  which 
seemed  to  be  not  wholly  satisfactory.  When  the  expert  looked 
into  the  accounts,  he  discovered  a  deficit  of  700,000 yen,  which 
of  course  he  advised  the  company   to  publish,   adding  that  the 


302  Logic. 

best  way  to  make  it  good  would  be  to  write  it  off  from  the 
reserve  fund.  A  grateful  acknowledgment  was  received  ;  but — 
so  the  reply  ran — the  Englishman's  advice  could  not  be  taken, 
"because,  according  to  government  regulations,  all  insurance 
companies  were  obliged  to  hold  a  reserve  of  500,000 yen."  The 
accounts  Mere  therefore  "  cooked,"  and  not  for  eighteen  months 
more  were  the  facts  made  public,  when  to  conceal  them  was  no 
longer  possible.  From  a  Japanese  point  of  view,  there  was  nothing 
specially  grotesque  or  dishonest  in  this  course ;  for  is  not  literal 
obedience  to  official  regulations  the  first  duty  of  every  loyal 
subject  ? 

It  is  especially  in  business  transactions  at  the  open  ports  that 
the'  European  mind  and  Japanese  logic  are  brought  into  contact, 
whence  frequently  friction  and  mutual  misunderstanding.  Certain 
aspects  of  the  mental  attitude  in  question  recur,  however,  so 
constantly  that  the  resident  European  merchants  have  learnt  how 
to  deal  with  them.  The  peculiarity  most  often  cited  is  the 
refusal  of  Japanese  tradesmen  to  make  a  reduction  on  a  quantity. 
We  Europeans  of  course  argue  thus  : — "  I,  the  buyer,  am  giving 
a  large  order  ;  the  seller  will  in  any  case  make  a  considerable 
profit  on  this  single  transaction,  comparatively  quickly  and  with 
comparatively  slight  trouble  ;  therefore  he  can  afford  to  lower  his 
price.  If  a  dozen  goes  at  the  rate  of  so  much,  the  gross  must 
go  at  so  much  less."  Nothing  appears  to  us  more  obvious  : — 
it  is  a  cardinal  principle  of  our  trade.  But  the  Japanese  dealer 
views  the  matter  differently.  "  If,"  says  he,  "  Messrs.  Smith  and 
Co.,  instead  of  ordering  only  one  bale  of  silk,  order  a  hundred, 
that  shows  that  they  are  badly  in  want  of  it,  and  must  be  able 
to  pay  a  good  price.  Furthermore,  if  I  sell  all  I  have  to  them, 
I  shall  have  none  left  for  other  customers,  which  may  prove 
very  inconvenient.  Their  expecting  me  to  reduce  my  figure  is 
another  instance  of  that  unreasonableness  on  the  part  of  the  red- 
haired  foreigner,  of  which  I  and  my  countrymen  have  already 
witnessed  so  many  proofs."  Hence  of  course  a  dead-lock,  but 
for  the  fact,  already  noted,  that  many  European  merchants  engaged 


Logic.  303 

in  the  Far-Eastern  trade  have  by  this  time  learnt  this  peculiarity, 
and  protect  themselves  against  it  by  such  devices  as  splitting  up 
their  orders  and  giving  them  in  different  names. 

The  subject  is  an  extremely  curious  one.  Sometimes,  after  a 
recurrence  of  astounding  instances,  one  is  apt  to  exclaim  that 
Japanese  logic  is  the  very  antipodes  of  European  logic,  that  it 
is  like  London  and  New  Zealand, — when  the  sun  shines  on  the 
one,  'tis  night-time  in  the  other,  and  vice  versa.  Were  it  really 
so,  action  would  be  easy  enough  : — one  would  simply  have  to 
ct>  by  the  "  rule  of  contraries."  But  no  ;  that  will  not  do  either. 
The  contradiction  is  on!}'  occasional,  it  only  manifests  itself 
sporadically  and  along  certain, — or  rather,  uncertain — lines  ;  it  is 
more  like  a  fold  in  a  garment,  a  crease  which  you  know  not 
where  to  expect ;  and  the  result  is  that  the  oldest  resident — for 
all  that  his  hair  has  grown  grey  in  the  land  of  the  bamboo  and 
the  jinrikisha — may  still,  to  the  end  of  the  chapter,  be  pulled 
up  sharp,  and  forced  to  exclaim  that  all  his  experience  does  not 
yet  suffice  to  probe  the  depths  of  the  mental  disposition  of  this 
fascinating,  but  enigmatical  race. 

Race,  yes,  that  is  it.  The  word  slipped  accidentally  from  our 
pen  ;  but  racial  difference  is  doubtless  the  explanation  of  the 
phenomenon  under  discussion, — an  explanation  which,  it  is  true, 
explains  nothing,  a  key  not  possible  practically  to  fit  into  the 
lock,  but  nevertheless  an  index  of  the  truth.  Why  so  ?  Because 
"  Man  "  is  an  exploded  fiction.  Instead  of  "  Man  "  in  the  abstract, 
anthropology  shows  us  races  of  men,  each  with  an  intellectual 
constitution  differing  sli^htlv  from  other  races.  That  each  race 
should  object  to  the  others,  should  fail  to  enter  into  the  ways 
and  thoughts  of  the  others,  is  but  one  aspect  of  the  assertion 
of  its  own  individuality.  But  here  a  distinction  is  called  for. 
Europeans  dislike  the  Chinaman  or  the  "  Nigger  "  instinctively, 
but  they  are  not  perplexed  by  him,  because  they  dismiss  him 
summarily  as  "  a  queer  creature."  His  pigtail  or  his  black  skin 
accounts  for  his  funny  ways.  They  would  be  surprised  if  he 
did   think  as   they   think.     It  is  when  different  races  have  come 


304  Long-tailed  Fowls. 

to  dress  alike,  to  use  the  same  sort  of  phraseology,  have  closely 
similar  institutions,  and  in  fact  stand  on  the  same  general  plane 
of  civilisation,  that  a  painful  shock  is  caused  whenever  the 
fundamental  contradiction  happens  to  break  through  the  surface. 
Many  of  us  have  experienced  somewhat  of  the  same  feeling  at 
home,  in  the  case  of  persons  having  foreign  blood  in  their  veins. 
They  may  speak  English  like  natives,  and  be  imbued  with  English 
notions.  Yet  suddenly  they  will  go  off,  as  it  were,  at  a  tangent, 
showing  that,  though  with  us,  they  are  not  of  us.  We  thought 
they  were  our  cousins,  and  we  make  the  unwelcome  discovery 
that  they  are  strangers  after  all. 

Long-tailed  Fowls.  Few  things  Japanese  are  more  curious 
and  beautiful  than  the  long-tailed  cock,  which  a  century  of 
artificial  selection  has  produced  from  common  barndoor  fowls  at 
the  village  of  Shinowara  near  Kochi  in  the  island  of  Shikoku. 
They  are  of  various  hues,  some  being  pure  white.  The  tail- 
feathers,  which  are  from  15  to  24  in  number  and  are  never 
moulted,  measure  from  7  or  8  to  1 1  ft.  in  length,  and  proceed 
from  quills  considerably  stouter  than  those  of  ordinary  fowls. 
The  present  writer  has  measured  one  specimen  13 J  ft.  long; 
and  as  great  a  length  as  18  ft.  is  said  to  have  been  attained. 
The  body-feathers,  which  hang  down  on  either  side  of  the  back 
above  the  tail  grow  to  a  length  of  4  ft.,  adding  greatly  to  the 
ornamental  appearance  of  the  bird. 

As  it  is  essential  to  the  preservation  of  the  tail-feathers  that 
they  be  allowed  to  hang  free,  these  cocks  are  kept  in  high 
narrow  cages,  quite  dark  except  close  to  the  top  ;  for  light  at  the 
bottom  would  attract  them.  When  the  tail-feathers  become  too 
long  and  touch  ground  in  the  cage,  a  bamboo  is  put  a  little 
way  back,  so  as  to  form  an  arch  and  thus  increase  the  distance. 
The  bird  sits  all  day  on  a  flat  perch  three  inches  wide,  and  is 
only  taken  out  once  in  two  days,  and  allowed  to  walk  about  for 
half-an-hour  or  so,  a  man  holding  up  its  tail  all  the  while  to 
prevent  it  from  getting  torn  or  soiled.     Once  or  twice  a  month 


Lotus.  305 

it  is  carefully  washed  with  warm  water,  and  is  then  as  carefully 
dried  on  some  high  place, — the  roof  or  wherever  may  be  most 
convenient — a  man  holding  the  tail  till  it  is  quite  dry.  The  birds 
are  fed  on  unhulled  rice  and  greens.  They  must  be  given  plenty 
of  water.  When  one  of  the  long-tailed  cocks  is  to  be  moved 
from  place  to  place,  it  is  put  in  a  long  narrow  box  similar  to 
those  in  which  the  Japanese  keep  kakemono  (hanging  scrolls), 
the  bird's  body  being  laid  at  full  length,  the  tail  twisted  round 
as  little  as  may  be.  The  dimensions  of  the  box  are  about  6 
inches  square,  and  4  ft.  6  in.  long.  There  is  a  grating  for  air 
at  one  end  only,  and  a  division  to  guard  the  feathers. 

The  hen  of  course  is  as  nothing  by  the  side  of  these  splendid 
cocks.  Yet  even  she  is  a  handsome  bird,  with  tail-feathers  longer 
than  those  of  any  ordinary  hen, — sometimes  as  much  as  8  inches. 
The  hens  lay  in  spring  and  autumn,  one  bird  producing  30  eggs 
yearly,  which  are  hatched  by  other  hens.  One,  or  at  most  two, 
hens  are  allowed  to  each  breeding  cock.  The  latter's  tail-feathers 
are  cut,  to  allow  of  his  walking  about  freely.  Thus  does  he  pay 
with  his  beaut}'  for  the  privilege  of  liberty,  and  of  living  a  little 
longer  than  his  long-tailed,  captive,  and  celibate  brethren.  It  is 
satisfactory,  however,  to  know  that  even  they  are  fairly  hardy, 
bearing  both  heat  and  cold  well,  and  sometimes  living  to  the  age 
of  nine.  They  are  almost  as  tame  as  dogs,  and  will  nestle  most 
affectionately  on  their  master's  arm  when  taken  out  of  their  dark 
travelling-box  into  the  light  of  day. 

Book    recommended.      Note   on  a  Long-tailed  Breed  of  Fowls  in   Tosa,  by  B.  H. 
Chamberlain,  in  the  "Asiatic  Transactions,"  Vol.  XXVII.  Part  I. 

Lotus.  The  so-called  lotus  of  this  country  is  really  a  species 
of  water-lily,  the  Nelumbium,  which  inhabits  shallow  ponds,  where- 
fore the  Japanese  Buddhists  compare  a  virtuous  man  dwelling  in 
this  wicked  world  to  a  lotus-flower  growing  out  of  the  mud. 
Sir  Monier  Williams  says  that  "  Its  constant  use  as  an  emblem 
seems  to  result  from  the  wheel-like  form  of  the  flower, — the  petals 
taking  the  place  of  spokes,  and  thus  typifying  the  doctrine  of 
perpetual    cycles   of  existence."        In   any    case,    the   connection 


306  Luchu. 

between  the  lotus  and  Buddhism  is  very  close.  Buddha  is  figured 
standing  on  a  lotus,  gold  and  silver  paper  lotuses  are  carried  at 
funerals,  tombstones  are  often  set  on  an  inverted  lotus-flower  of 
stone  as  their  base,  lotus-beds  often  surround  shrines  built  on  islets. 
Owing  to  this  association  with  the  idea  of  death  the  lotus  is  a 
flower  apart,  not  sharing  in  the  popularity  of  the  cherry-blossom, 
the  iris,  and  the  chrysanthemum.  But  this  sentimental  objection 
does  not  exclude  its  pips  and  roots  from  being  used  as  a  common 
article  of  diet. 

Stately  and  yet  tender  is  the  beauty  of  the  lotus-blossom  early 
on  a  summer's  morning — for  its  petals  close  before  the  overpower- 
ing heat  of  the  August  noonday — while  the  great  bluish-green 
leaves,  studded  with  water-drops,  continue  to  reflect  the  sky. 

Luohu.  Luchu — pronounced  Diichu  by  the  natives  and 
Ryukyu  by  the  Japanese — is,  in  its  widest  acceptation,  the  general 
name  of  several  groups  of  islands  which  stretch  nearly  the  whole 
way  between  the  Southernmost  outlying  islets  of  the  Japanese 
archipelago  and  the  North-Eastern  extremity  of  Formosa.  But  it 
is  usually  restricted  in  practice  to  the  central  group,  the  chief 
members  of  which  are  Amami-Oshima  and  Okinawa.  This  group 
is  of  coral  formation,  and  lies  between  1270  and  1300  long, 
east  of  Greenwich,  and  between  2  6°  and  2  8°  30'  of  North  lat.  To 
this  position  it  owes  a  mild  climate,  marred  only  by  the  extreme 
violence  of  occasional  typhoons  during  the  summer  months.  The 
soil  is  so  fertile  as  to  produce  two  crops  of  rice  yearly. 

In  race  and  language  the  Luchuans  are  closely  allied  to  the 
Japanese,  but  for  many  centuries  the  two  peoples  seem  not  to  have 
communicated  with  each  other.  The  veil  lifts  in  A. D.  11 87  with 
the  accession  of  King  Shunten,  said  to  have  been  a  son  of 
Tametomo,  the  famous  Japanese  archer.  It  is  recorded  that 
the  Luchuans  first  sent  an  ambassador  with  presents  to  the 
Shogun  of  Japan  in  the  year  145 1,  that  they  discontinued  such 
presents  or  tribute  at  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century, 
and  were  chastised   for  this  neglect  by  the  then  Prince  of  Satsuma. 


Luchu.  307 

Luchu  continued  to  be  a  sub-fief  of  Satsuma,  but  with  a  ruler 
bearing  the  title  of  King,  until  the  time  of  the  Japanese  revolution 
of  1868.  Meanwhile  the  Luchuans,  who  had  obtained  their  civili- 
sation from  China,  also  paid  tribute  to  the  Chinese  Court,  and 
received  investiture  for  their  kinglets  from  Peking.  The  little 
kingdom  thus  faced  two  ways,  so  that  trouble  was  bound  to 
ensue.  An  embassy  was  sent  to  T5kyo  in  1878,  to  endeavour  to 
arrange  matters  in  such  wise  that  the  double  protectorate  might 
be  maintained, — China  being,  as  the  envoys  said,  honoured  by 
the  Luchuans  as  their  father,  and  Japan  as  their  mother.  But 
the  Japanese  Government  refused  to  admit  this  claim.  The 
Luchuan  king  was  brought  captive  to  Tokyo  in  1879,  and  the 
archipelago  was  organised  into  a  Japanese  prefecture  under  the 
title  of  Okinawa-Ken.  This  change,  though  intensely  disagreeable 
to  the  little  insular  Court  and  aristocracy,  who  forfeited  most  of  their 
privileges,  is  believed  to  have  been  beneficial  to  the  people  at  large. 
The  Luchuans — even  the  men — are  distinguished  in  appearance 
by  a  top-knot  of  hair,  through  which  they  pass  a  large  pin 
or  skewer  of  gold,  silver,  or  copper,  according  to  their  rank. 
Formerly  corpses,  instead  of  being  interred  at  once,  were  left  to 
decay  either  in  a  provisional  grave  or  in  a  stream  of  water,  and 
it  was  only  after  three  years  that  the  last  funeral  rites  were 
performed.  This  custom  has  happily  fallen  into  disuse.  The 
capital  of  Luchu  is  Shuri,  whose  port  is  Nafa,  called  Okinawa 
by  the  Japanese.  The  chief  products  are  rice  and  sugar,  the 
latter  of  which  is  the  main  staple  of  commerce.  The  area  of  the 
islands  has  been  roughly  estimated  at  1,000  square  miles  ;  and 
the  population  is  453,000.  The  Luchus  may  easily  be  reached 
from  Kobe  via  the  Inland  Sea  and  Kagoshima.  The  steamer  first 
visits  the  island  of  Amami-Oshima,  and  then  proceeds  to  Nafa, 
where  it  stops  three  days.  The  round  trip  from  Kobe  and  back 
takes  seventeen  days. 

Books  recommended.  The  Luchu  Islands  and  their  Inhabitants,  by  B.  H. 
Chamberlain,  published  in  "The  Geographical  Journal"  for  April,  May,  and  June, 
'895. — Essay  in  Aid  of  a  Grammar  and  Dictionary  of  the  Luchuan  Language,  by  the 
same,  printed  as  Supplement  to  Vol.  XXIII.  of  the  "  Asiatic  Transactions." 


308  Luck  (Gods  of). 

Luck  (Gods  of).  The  Seven  Gods  of  Luck  (Shichi  Fuku- 
jifi)  are  :  Fukurokuju,  distinguished  by  a  preternaturally  long 
head,  and  attended  by  a  crane,  a  deer,  or  a  tortoise ;  Daikoku, 
who  stands  upon  a  pair  of  rice-bales  and  is  accompanied  by  a  rat ; 
Ebisu,  bearing  a  fish  ;  Hotei,  with  an  enormous  naked  abdomen, 
a  bag  on  his  back  and  a  fan  in  his  hand  ;  Bishamon,  clad 
in  armour,  and  bearing  a  spear  and  a  toy  pagoda ;  Benten, 
distinguished  by  being  the  only  female  in  the  assemblage  and 
having  it  in  her  power  to  confer,  not  only  victory  and  riches, 
but  eloquence  and  wisdom  ;  the  serpent  or  dragon  is  her  creature 
of  predilection ;  lastly,    Jurojin,  a  sort  of  repetition  of  Fukurokuju. 

The  Seven  Gods  of  Luck  have  been  swept  together  from  many 
incongruous  sources — Japanese  Shintoism,  Chinese  Taoism,  Indian 
Buddhism  and  Brahmanism.  Their  union  in  one  group  is  the 
result  of  nothing  more  recondite  than  popular  ignorance  and 
confusion  of  ideas,  and  can  be  traced  no  further  back  than  the  com- 
mencement of  the  1 7th  century.  The  reader  will  find  in  Anderson's 
Catalogue  of  Japanese  and  Chinese  Paintings  in  the  British  Museum 
(pp.  27-46),  a  full  discussion  of  the  origin  and  attributes  of  these 
divinities,  and  will  be  surprised  to  discover  how  slender  is  the 
basis  on  which  their  modern  popularity  has  been  reared. 

Connected  with  the  Gods  of  Luck  is  the  Takara-bime,  or 
"  Treasure  Ship,"  which  is  supposed  to  sail  into  port  on  New 
Year's  Eve,  with  the  Gods  of  Luck  as  passengers  and,  as  cargo, 
the  iakara-?nono,  or  "treasures"  of  popular  lore,  which  are 
enumerated  by  Anderson  as  follows  : — the  hat  of  invisibility,  the 
lucky  rain-coat,  the  sacred  key,  the  inexhaustible  purse,  the 
precious  jewel,  the  clove,  the  scrolls,  the  hammer,  the  weight 
{/undo),  and  the  shippo, — a  flat  object  apparently  representing  a 
coin.  Pictures  of  this  "Treasure  Ship"  are  hawked  about  the 
streets  at  New  Year  time,  and  every  person  who  puts  one  into  the 
little  drawer  of  his  wooden  pillow  on  the  night  of  the  2nd  January, 
is  believed  to  ensure  a  lucky  dream.  At  the  side  of  the  picture 
is  printed  a  stanza  of  poetry  so  arranged  that  the  syllables,  when 
read  backwards,  give  the  same  text  as  when  read  forwards. 


Marriage.  309 

Maps.  Much  the  best  maps  of  Japan  are  those  now  in  course 
of  publication  by  the  Geological  Office  of  the  Imperial  Department 
of  Agriculture  and  Commerce.  There  are  three  series, — geological 
proper,  agronomical,  and  topographical,  these  last  being  specially 
recommended  for  all  ordinary  purposes,  and  obtainable  of  Messrs. 
Kelly  and  Walsh  at  Yokohama.  The  Yokohama  section  is  parti- 
cularly useful,  including,  as  it  does,  many  of  the  localities  most 
frequently  visited  by  pleasure-seekers,  such  as  Kamakura,  Eno- 
shima,  Miyanoshita,  etc.  There  are  two  editions  of  this  valuable 
set  of  maps, — one  on  the  scale  of  1  in  200,000,  the  other  of  1 
in  400,000.  Unfortunately,  neither  set  has  yet  been  pushed  to 
completion.  A  complete  map  on  the  scale  of  1  in  400,000  was, 
however,  issued  in  1900. 

The  Fuji-mi  Ju-san-Shu,  or  "  Thirteen  Provinces  round  Fuji- 
yama," is  the  best  of  the  old-fashioned  Japanese  maps.  The 
distances  are  given  in  figures  on  the  roads,  and  the  green  moun- 
tains rise  as  in  a  picture.  The  father  of  Japanese  cartography 
was  Ino  Chukei  (born  A.  D.  1744),  of  whose  life  and  labours 
Dr.  Knott  has  given  a  short  account  in  Vol.  XVI.  Part  II.  of 
the  Asiatic  Transactions.  The  only  reward  he  earned  from  the 
government  of  that  day  was  to  be  cast  into  a  dungeon. 

Marriage.  In  everything  relating  to  marriage,  the  difference 
between  East  and  West  is  still  very  strongly  marked.  Marriage 
among  the  Japanese  is  less  of  a  personal  and  more  of  a  family 
affair  than  it  is  in  Western  lands.  Religion  has  no  say  in  the 
matter,  and  the  law  regards  it  from  a  different  point  of  view. 
An  Englishman  chooses  his  wife  himself;  but  the  English  law, 
though  perfectly  neutral  during  this  initial  stage  of  the  proceedings, 
steps  in  as  soon  as  the  knot  is  tied,  and  imperiously  forbids  its  sev- 
erance except  in  case  of  gross  misconduct  by  one  of  the  parties. 
Japanese  marriages,  on  the  contrary,  are  arranged  by  the  two 
families,  and  the  step  is  less  solemn  and  not  irrevocable,  Japanese 
law  remaining  as  neutral  at  the  end  as  at  the  beginning.  For 
though   marriage   is  a   legal   contract   while  it  lasts,  it  may,   like 


310  Marriage. 

other  contracts,  be  terminated  by  the  joint  request  and  consent 
of  the  contracting  parties. 

The  way  things  are  managed  is  this.  When  their  child — 
whether  boy  or  girl — has  reached  a  marriageable  age,  the  duty  of 
the  parents  is  to  secure  a  suitable  partner.  Custom,  however,  rules 
that  the  conduct  of  the  affair  must  be  entrusted  to  a  middleman 
{nakodo) — some  discreet  married  friend,  who  not  only  negotiates 
the  marriage,  but  remains  through  life  a  sort  of  godfather  to  the 
young  couple,  a  referee  to  whom  disputes  and  even  arrangements 
for  divorce  may  be  submitted  for  arbitration.  Having  fixed  on  an 
eligible  parti,  the  middleman  arranges  for  what  is  termed  the  ??ii-ai, 
literally,  the  "  mutual  seeing," — a  meeting  at  which  the  lovers 
(if  persons  unknown  to  each  other  may  be  so  styled)  are  allowed 
to  see,  sometimes  even  to  speak  to  each  other,  and  thus  estimate 
each  other's  merits.  In  strict  etiquette,  the  interview  should  take 
place  either  at  the  middleman's  own  residence,  or  at  some  other 
private  house  designated  by  the  parents  on  both  sides.  But 
among  the  middle  and  lower  classes,  a  picnic,  a  party  to  the 
theatre,  or  a  visit  to  a  temple  often  serves  the  purpose.  If  the 
man  objects  to  the  girl  or  the  girl  to  the  man  after  the  "  mutual 
seeing,"  there  is  an  end  of  the  matter,  in  theory  at  least.  But 
in  practice  the  young  people  are  in  their  parents'  hands,  to  do 
as  their  parents  may  ordain.  The  girl,  in  particular,  is  a  nobody 
in  the  matter.     It  is  not  for  girls  to  have  opinions. 

If  both  parties  are  satisfied  with  what  they  have  seen  of  each 
other,  gifts  consisting  of  clothes,  or  of  money  to  purchase  clothes, 
and  of  certain  kinds  of  fish  and  edible  seaweed,  are  exchanged 
between  them.  This  exchange  of  presents  is  called  yuinb.  It 
corresponds  to  betrothal,  and  is  binding — if  not  in  actual  law, 
at  any  rate  in  custom.  The  presents  once  exchanged,  neither 
party  can  draw  back.  A  lucky  day  is  then  chosen  for  the 
wedding.  When  it  comes,  the  bride,  dressed  all  in  white,  the 
colour  of  mourning — to  signify  that  she  dies  to  her  own  family, 
and  that  she  will  never  leave  her  husband's  house  but  as  a 
corpse — is  borne  away  at  nightfall  to  her  new  home,  escorted  by 


Marriage.  311 

the  middleman  and  his  wife.  The  parental  house  is  swept  out 
on  her  departure,  and  in  former  days  a  bonfire  was  lighted  at 
the  gate, — ceremonies  indicative  of  the  purification  necessary  after 
the  removal  of  a  dead  body. 

The  wedding,  which  takes  place  immediately  on  the  bride's 
arrival  at  the  house  of  her  husband's  parents,  is  of  the  nature  of 
a  dinner-party.  The  distinguishing  feature  of  it  is  what  is  termed 
the  san-san  ku-do,  that  is,  literally,  "three  three,  nine  times," 
because  both  the  bridegroom  and  the  bride  drink  three  times 
out  of  each  of  three  wine-cups  of  different  sizes,  making  nine 
times  in  all, — or  rather  they  do  not  drink,  but  only  lift  the  cup 
to  their  lips.  Another  essential  part  of  the  ceremony  is  the 
changing  of  garments.  The  bride,  on  reaching  her  new  home, 
changes  her  white  dress  for  one  given  to  her  by  her  husband. 
But  immediately  after  the  ceremonial  drinking-bout,  and  while 
the  guests  are  still  assembled  at  the  feast,  she  retires  and  puts 
on  a  coloured  dress  brought  with  her  from  her  parents'  house. 
The  bridegroom  changes  his  dress  at  the  same  time  in  another 
apartment*  At  the  conclusion  of  the  feast,  the  newly  married 
couple  are  led  into  the  bridal  chamber  by  the  middleman  and 
his  wife,  whereupon  they  pledge  each  other  in  nine  more  cups 
of  wine.  It  is  significant  that  the  husband,  as  lord  and  master, 
now  drinks  first.  At  the  earlier  stage  of  the  proceedings  the 
bride  drank  first,  in  her  quality  of  guest.  This  ends  the  wed- 
ding ceremony. 

A  few  days  later — strictly  speaking  it  should  be  on  the  third 
day — a  visit  is  paid  by  the  couple  to  the  bride's  parents.  This 
is  termed  her  salo-gaeri,  or  "  return  home."  On  this  occasion, 
she  wears  a  dress  presented  to  her  by  her  husband  or  his  family. 
Meantime  the  necessary  notice  has  been  given  to  the  authorities, 
which  is  the  only  legal  form  to  be  observed.  It  consists  in  a 
request  to  the  district  office  by  the  head  of  the  family  to  which 
the  girl  formerly  belonged,  that  her  registration  may  be  transferred 

*  Some  men  are  now  married  in  European  evening  dress,    in   which   case   no   change 
takes  place. 


312  Marriage. 

to  the  office  within  whose  jurisdiction  her  husband,  or  the  head 
of  her  husband's  family,  if  the  husband  himself  be  not  a  house- 
holder, has  his  domicile.  An  official  intimation  of  the  transfer 
follows  this  request,  and  all  is  then  in  order. 

The  above  is  the  usual  form  of  marriage.  In  some  cases, 
however,  the  bridegroom  is  adopted  into  the  bride's  family,  instead 
of  the  bride  into  the  bridegroom's.  This  takes  place  mostly 
when  a  parent  has  only  a  daughter  or  daughters,  but  no  son. 
In  order  to  preserve  the  family  intact — due  regard  being  had  to 
the  circumstance  that  no  female  can  be  its  legal  head — it  is  then 
necessary  to  adopt  a  son-in-law,  who,  literally  becoming  a  son 
in  the  eyes  of  the  law,  drops  his  own  surname  and  takes  that 
of  his  wife.  None  but  poor  men  are  generally  willing  to  place 
themselves  in  such  a  false  position. 

Amongst  the  lower  classes,  ceremonies  and  considerations  of 
all  kinds  are  often  honoured  only  in  the  breach,  many  of  the 
so-called  marriages  of  plebeians  being  mere  cohabitation  founded 
on  mutual  convenience.  This  accounts  for  the  "  boy "  and  the 
cook — to  their  foreign  master's  increasing  astonishment — being 
found  to  bring  home  a  new  wife  almost  as  often  as  they  bring 
home  a  new  saucepan.  Such  laxity  would  never  be  tolerated  in 
.well-bred  circles. 

When  it  is  added  that  a  Japanese  bride  has  no  bridesmaids, 
that  the  young  couple  go  off  on  no  honeymoon,  that  a  Japanese 
wife  is  not  only  supposed  to  obey  her  husband,  but  actually  does 
so,  that  the  husband,  if  well  enough  off,  probably  has  a  concubine 
besides  and  makes  no  secret  of  it,  and  that  the  mother-in-law, 
with  us  a  terror  to  the  man,  is  not  only  a  terror  but  a  daily  and 
hourly  cross  to  the  girl — for  in  nine  cases  out  of  ten,  the  girl 
has  to  live  with  her  husband's  family  and  be  at  the  beck  and 
call  of  his  relations — when  due  consideration  is  given  to  all  these 
circumstances,  it  will  be  seen  that  marriage  in  Japan  is  a  vastly 
different  thing,  socially  as  well  as  legally,  from  marriage  in  Anglo- 
Saxon  countries.  The  reader  will  be  still  more  firmly  persuaded 
of  this  truth,  if  he  will  take  the  trouble  to  glance  at  the  Article  on 


Marriage.  313 

Woman.  He  will  see  that  in  this  part  of  the  world  it  is  a  case, 
not  of  place  aux  dames,  but  place  anx   messieurs* 

The  men,  having  everything  their  own  way,  naturally  marry 
young.  Speaking  broadly,  there  are  no  bachelors  in  Japan.  For 
an  exactly  contrary  reason,  there  are  no  old  maids.  The  girls 
are  married  of!  without  being  consulted,  and  they  accept  their  fate 
as  a  matter  of  course,  because  their  mothers  and  grandmothers, 
ever  since  the  beginning  of  the  world,  accepted  a  like  fate  before 
them.  One  love  marriage  we  have  heard  of, — one  in  thirty 
years.  But  then  both  the  young  people  had  been  brought  up  in 
America.  Accordingly  they  took  the  reins  into  their  own  hands, 
to  the  great  scandal  of  all  their  friends  and  relations. 

It  would  be  interesting,  were  it  possible,  to  ascertain  statistically 
the  effect  on  morality  of  early  marriage  as  practised  in  this  part 
of  the  world.  Our  impression  is  that  the  good  results  anticipated 
from  such  a  system  by  certain  European  reformers  do  not  show 
themselves  here  in  fact.  Not  that  wider  intercourse  with  the 
people  bears  out  the  casual  observer's  harsh  judgment  on  the 
standard  of  Japanese  female  morality.  Japanese  ladies  are  every 
whit  as  chaste  as  their  Western  sisters.  But  so  far  as  we  have 
been  able  to  observe,  the  only  effect  of  early  marriage  on  the 
men  is  to  change  the  date  of  their  wild-oats  sowing,  making  it 
come  after  wedlock  instead  of  before.  Divorce  is  common. 
During  the  earlier  part  of  the  period  covered  by  statistics,  the  propor- 
tion of  divorces  to  marriages  was  nearly  as  1  to  3  ;  but  since  1901 


*  May  the  writer  be  permitted  here  to  record  a  little  experience  of  his  own?  In 
his  Introduction  to  the  Kojiki,  he  had  drawn  attention  to  the  inferior  place  held  by 
women  in  ancient  as  in  modern  Japan.  Some  years  afterwards,  six  of  the  chief  literati 
of  the  old  school  did  him  the  honour  to  translate  this  Introduction  into  Japanese, 
with  a  running  commentary.  They  patted  him  on  the  back  for  many  things  ;  but  when 
they  reached  the  observation  anent  the  subjection  of  women,  their  wrath  exploded. 
"The    subordination    of  women    to    men,"   so  runs  this  commentary,  "is  an  extremely 

correct  custom.     To  think  the  contrary  is  to  harbour  European   prejudice For   the 

man  to  take  precedence  over  the  woman,  is  the  grand  law  of  heaven  and  earth.  To 
ignore  this,  and  to  talk  of  the  contrary  as  barbarous,  is  absurd." — It  does  not  fall  to 
every  one's  lot  to  be  anathematised  by  half-a-dozen  Japanese  literary  popes — and  that, 
too,  merely  for  taking  the  part  of  the  ladies  ! 


3U  Maru. 

matters  have  improved,  and  the  figures  are  now  about  i  to  5. 
The  immense  majority  of  cases  occur  among  the  lower  classes. 
The  upper  classes  rarely  resort  to  divorce.  Why,  indeed,  should 
a  man  take  the  trouble  to  get  separated  from  an  uncongenial 
wife,  when  any  wife  occupies  too  inferior  a  position  to  be  able 
to  make  herself  a  serious  nuisance,  and  when  society  has  no 
objection  to  his  keeping  any  number  of  mistresses  ? 

The  student  of  anthropology  may  like  to  know  that  neither 
ancient  nor  modern  Japanese  custom  shows  any  trace  of  exogamy, 
— a  fact  the  more  remarkable  when  one  considers  the  immense 
influence  exerted  on  Japan  by  China,  where  it  has  been  forbidden 
from  time  immemorial  for  a  man  to  marry  a  girl  bearing  the 
same  surname  as  his  own. 

Books  recommended.  Japanese  Girls  and  Women,  by  Miss  Bacon.—  The  Japa- 
nese Bride,  by  N.  Tamura.  The  publication  of  this  latter  little  book,  in  1893,  raised 
such  a  storm  of  indignation  among  the  author's  countrymen  that  he  was  forced  to  resign 
his  position  of  pastor  of  one  of  the  native  Christian  Churches. 

Maru.  It  is  often  asked  :  What  does  the  word  Maru  mean 
in  the  names  of  ships — as  Tokyo  Maru,  Sagami  Maru,  Hiryu 
Maru,  etc.?  The  answer  is  that  the  origin  of  the  term  is  obscure. 
Maru  means  "  round  ;  "  but  how  came  ships  by  so  inappropriate 
a  name  ? 

The  first  thing  to  note  is  that  in  former  times  ships  had  not 
the  monopoly  of  the  name.  Swords,  musical  instruments  of 
various  kinds,  pieces  of  armour,  dogs,  hawks,  and  the  concentric 
sections  of  castles,  were  called  Maru  also.  The  probability  is 
that  two  distinct  words — maru  and  ?naro — have  flowed  into  one, 
and  so  got  confused.  To  name  the  concentric  sections  of  a 
castle  maru,  "  round,"  was  but  natural.  The  word  maro,  on  the 
other  hand,  is  an  archaic  term  of  endearment.  Hence  its  use 
in  such  ancient  proper  names  as  Tamura-Maro,  a  great  general 
who  subdued  the  Amos  ;  Abe-no-Nakamaro,  an  eminent  scholar 
of  the  eighth  century ;  Okina-Mdro,  a  favourite  dog  of  the 
Emperor  Ichijo,  and  so  on.  The  warrior's  pet  sword,  the 
sportsman's   favourite    dog    or    hawk,    the  oarsman's  boat,  would 


Massage.  315 

naturally  come  to  be  distinguished  by  the  same  half-personal 
name,  much  as  the  English  sailor  or  engineer  calls  his  ship  or 
locomotive  "she."  When  the  ancient  word  niaro  ceased  to  be 
understood,  it  would  easily  slide  into  the  more  familiar  maru, 
by  the  alteration  of  the  final  vowel,  0  and  u  being  particularly 
apt  to  interchange  in  Japanese. 

Observe  that  Maru  is  applied  to  merchant  vessels  only.  Men- 
of-war  take  Kan  instead,  as  Maya  Kan,  Asama  Kan.  Kan  was 
originally  a  Chinese  word  meaning  "  war-vessel."  It  is  now 
pronounced  Ian  in  China  itself,  and  is  no  longer  there  used  in 
the  same  sense. 

Massage  has  for  centuries  played  an  important  role  in 
Japanese  medicine, — it,  acupuncture,  and  the  moxa  being  univer- 
sally credited  with  more  than  all  the  many  virtues  which 
Beecham,  among  ourselves,  claims  for  his  pills,  and  "  Mother 
Seigel "  for  her  syrup.  The  shampooers,  popularly  known  as 
annua  san,  also  occupy  a  conspicuous  place  in  Japanese  social 
life.  Immemorial  custom  limits  the  profession  to  the  blind, 
who  thus  support  their  families,  instead  of,  as  is  mostly  the  case 
in  Western  countries,  being  a  burden  to  them.  Such  sums  are 
they  enabled  to  accumulate,  that  they  often  turn  money-lenders 
as  well  and  are  correspondingly  hated. 

Till  about  the  year  1870,  all  the  shampooers  in  Japan  formed 
one  immense  guild  under  two  provosts,  one  of  whom  lived  at 
Yedo,  the  other  at  Kyoto.  This  guild  possessed  various  legal 
privileges,  and  admittance  to  it  took  place  on  the  passing  of  certain 
tests  and  the  payment  of  fees.  It  was  divided  into  several  grades, 
the  rise  from  grade  to  grade  being  conditioned  by  new  tests  and 
higher  fees.  For  the  highest  grade  to  which  any  ordinary  blind 
mortal  could  aspire — the  grade  next  under  that  of  provost — a  fee 
of  $1,000  was  exacted.  This  organisation  is  now  fast  falling  into 
decay ;  but  the  melancholy  whistle  of  the  blind  shampooer,  as  he 
slowly  gropes  his  way  along  the  street  at  night,  staff  in  hand,  is 
still  one  of  the  characteristic  sounds  of  every  Japanese  town. 


3 1 6  Met  al- work . 

Massage  is  much  to  be  recommended  to  tired  pedestrians  and 
to  persons  suffering  from  lumbago,  rheumatism,  and  other  pains 
and  aches.  The  old-fashioned  Japanese  shampooers,  however, 
make  the  mistake  of  shampooing  down  instead  of  shampooing 
up.  A  portion  of  the  good  done  is  thus  neutralised,  one 
object  of  scientific  massage  being  to  help  back  towards  the  centre 
the  blood  which  is  lingering  in  the  superficial  veins.  This  fact  is 
now  beginning  to  be  known  and  acted  on  in  Japan, — one  of 
the  fruits  of  German  medical  tuition. 

Book  recommended.  Dr.  W.  N.  Whitney's  Notes  on  the  History  of  Medical 
Progress  in  Japan,  published  in  Vol.  XII.  Part  IV.  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions," 
p.  331  et  seq. 

Metal- work.  Bronze  was  introduced  into  Japan  from  China 
via  Korea,  and  the  Japanese  still  call  it  "  the  Chinese  metal " 
(Kara  kane).  But  it  is  the  metal  in  which  Japanese  art  was 
already  winning  its  brightest  laurels  over  a  thousand  years  ago. 
The  chief  forms  are  the  mirror,  the  temple  bell,  the  gong,  the 
vase  (originally  intended  for  the  adornment  of  Buddhist  altars), 
the  lantern,  and  the  colossal  representation  of  divine  personages. 
The  temple  bells  at  Osaka,  Kyoto,  and  Nara  count  among  the 
largest  in  the  world ;  but  the  grandest  example  of  Japanese 
bronze-casting  is  the  Dai-butsu  (literally,  " great  Buddha")  at 
Kamakura,  which  dates  from  the  thirteenth  century.  He  who 
has  time  should  visit  this  Dai-butsu  repeatedly ;  for,  like  Niagara, 
like  St.  Peter's,  and  several  other  of  the  greatest  works  of  nature 
and  of  art,  it  fails  to  produce  its  full  effect  on  a  first  or  even  on  a 
second  visit ;  but  the  impression  it  produces  grows  on  the  beholder 
each  time  that  he  gazes  afresh  at  the  calm,  intellectual,  passionless 
face,  which  seems  to  concentrate  in  itself  the  whole  philosophy 
of  Buddhism, — the  triumph  of  mind  over  sense,  of  eternity  over 
fleeting  time,  of  the  enduring  majesty  of  Nirvana  over  the  trivial 
prattle,  the  transitory  agitations  of  mundane  existence. 

Armour  is  another  use  to  which  metal  (iron  and  steel)  was  put 
from  the  very  earliest  ages.  The  best  examples  of  iron  and  steel 
armour    date    from   the  thirteenth  and  fourteenth  centuries.     The 


Mikado.  3 1 7 

best  swords  date  from  the  same  time.  The  ornamental  sword- 
hilts,  guards,  etc.,  date  only  from  the  sixteenth  century  on- 
wards. The  eighteenth  and  nineteenth  centuries  were  the  most 
fruitful  epoch  for  the  production  of  small  bronze  objects,  whose 
chief  ratsoti  d'etre  is  ornament,  such  as  clasps,  paper-weights, 
small  figures  of  animals,  mouthpieces  for  pipes,  and  vases  intend- 
ed for  dwelling- rooms, — not  for  Buddhist  altars,  as  in  earlier  days. 
Damascening,  or  inlaying  on  metal,  has  been  carried  to  great 
perfection,  notably  of  late  years,  when  designs  in  various 
metals  and  alloys  on  a  basis  of  bronze  or  iron  have  been  made 
to  reproduce  whole  landscapes  with  the  minuteness  of  a  paint- 
ing. Contemporary  artists  in  silver  are  obtaining  delightful 
results.  Hitherto  the  gold  and  silver  work  of  the  Japanese 
had  been  less  remarkable  than  their  bronzes.  In  enamel — espe- 
cially in  what  is  known  as  cloisonne  enamel — they  are  beyond 
all  praise.  (See  also  Articles  on  Armour,  Cloisonne,  Mirrors, 
and  Swords.) 

Books  recommended.  Brinkley's  Japan  and  China,  Vol.  VII.  JaJ>.inesc  Metal- 
lurgy, by  Win.  Gowland,  in  the  "Journal  of  the  Society  of  Chemical  Industry."  The 
Art  of  Casting  Bronze  in  Japan,  by  the  same,  in  the  "Journal  of  the  Society  of 
Arts."  The  Dolmens  and  Burial  Mounds  in  Japan,  by  the  same  (Society  of  Antiquaries), 
all  profusely  illustrated. — Rein's  Industries  of  Japan,  pp.  436  and  488. — Ornamental 
Arts  of  Japan,  by  Audsley. — Japan,  by  C.  Dresser. 

Mikado.  Though  this  is  the  name  by  which  the  whole  outer 
world  knows  the  sovereign  of  Japan,  it  is  not  that  now  used  in 
Japan  itself,  except  in  poetry  and  on  great  occasions.  The 
Japanese  have  got  into  the  habit  of  calling  their  sovereign  by 
such  alien  Chinese  titles  as  Tenshi,  "  the  Son  of  Heaven  ;  "  Ten-o, 
or  Tenndy  "  the  Heavenly  Emperor ; "  Shujd,  "  the  Supreme 
Master."  His  designation  in  the  official  translations  of  modern 
public  documents  into  English  is  "Emperor."  It  will  be  a  pity 
if  this  entirely  supersedes,  in  literary  and  colloquial  European 
usage,  the  traditional  title  of  "  Mikado,"  which  is  at  once  ancient, 
sonorous,  and  distinctively  Japanese. 

The  etymology  of  the  word  Mikado  is  not  quite  clear.  Some 
— and  theirs    is    the    current    opinion — trace    it  to  mi,  "  august," 


3i  8  Mikado. 

and  kado,  a  "gate,"  reminding  one  of  the  "Sublime  Porte"  of 
Turkey.  Sir  Ernest  Satow  prefers  to  derive  it  from  mika,  an 
archaic  word  for  "great,"  and  to,  "a  place."  In  either  case  the 
word  is  one  indicative  of  the  highest  respect,  as  it  is  but  natural 
that  the  name  used  by  the  Japanese  of  old  to  designate  their 
heaven-descended  sovereign  should  be.  The  word  Mikado  is 
often  employed  to  denote  the  monarch's  Court  as  well  as  the 
monarch  himself,  Japanese  idiom  lending  itself  to  such  double 
usage  for  a  single  word. 

The  antiquity  of  the  Imperial  family  of  Japan  is  unparalleled. 
The  Japanese  themselves  claim  that,  after  endless  ages  passed  in 
higher  spheres,  it  began  its  earthly  career  with  the  first  human 
monarch,  Jimmu  Tenn5,  in  the  year  660  before  Christ.  From  this, 
historical  criticism  bids  us  subtract  more  than  a  millennium,  as 
Japanese  history  does  not  become  a  record  of  solid  facts  till  the 
fifth  or  sixth  century  after  Christ.  It  should  also  be  pointed  out 
that  the  succession  has  by  no  means  followed  those  stringent 
rules  which  Europe  considers  necessary  for  legitimacy.  Many 
Mikados,  even  down  to  quite  recent  times,  have  been  the  sons  of 
concubines ;  others  have  been  merely  adopted  from  some  related 
branch.  Still,  all  deductions  made,  the  family  as  such  stands  forth 
proudly  as  the  oldest  in  the  world.  We  know  positively  that 
it  has  reigned  ever  since  the  dawn  of  history  in  this  archipelago, 
and  that  even  then  it  was  considered  of  immemorial  age.  The 
fact  is  peculiarly  striking,  if  we  reflect  upon  the  usually  brief  life 
of  Oriental  dynasties.  Little  wonder,  therefore,  all  things  con- 
sidered, if  a  religious  reverence  for  the  Imperial  line  is  as 
axiomatic  in  Japan,  as  completely  removed  beyond  all  doubt  or 
controversy,  as  is  the  doctrine  of  the  equal  rights  and  duties  of 
all  men  in  the  democratic  societies  of  the  West. 

The  present  Mikado  was  born  on  the  3rd  November,  1852, 
and  succeeded  to  the  throne  in  1867.  His  name  is  Mutsuhito; 
but  this  name  is  scarcely  ever  mentioned,  and  is  probably  not 
even  known  to  the  great  majority  of  the  nation.  In  Japan  the 
Emperor   is    simply    the  Emperor, — not  a  personality,  an  almost 


Mineral  Springs.  319 

familiar  individuality,  as  King  Edward,  for  instance,  and  Kaiser 
Wilhelm  are  to  us.  Such  a  question  as  "  Is  the  Mikado 
popular?"  which  we  have  sometimes  been  asked  in  England, 
shows  the  questioner  to  be  ten  thousand  miles  from  an  apprecia- 
tion of  the  attitude  of  men's  minds  in  Japan,  or  indeed  in  any 
Far-Eastern  land, — an  attitude  entirely  reverential  and  distant,  as 
to  a  god.  Future  generations  of  Japanese  will  probably  know 
the  present  monarch  as  Meiji  Temid,  the  word  Tennd,  as  already 
explained,  signifying  "  Heavenly  Emperor,"  and  Meiji  being 
the  chronological  designation  of  the  years  comprised  in  his 
reign.  The  reign  itself  will  doubtless  stand  out  in  Japanese 
history  as  prominently  as  those  which  witnessed  Japan's  first 
great  revolution, — her  conversion  to  Buddhism  and  Chinese 
civilisation. 

A  point  of  etiquette  which  foreigners  should  bear  in  mind, 
is  that  neither  the  Emperor  himself  nor  any  member  of  the 
Imperial  Family  must  ever  be  looked  down  on.  Should  an 
Imperial  procession  pass  by,  do  not  stand  at  an  upper  window 
or  on  any  commanding  height.  The  occasional  infraction  of 
this  rule  has  given  great  offence,  and  produced  disagreeable 
results. 

Book  recommended.  Failing  something  more  vivid  and  "intimate,"  "■  Am  jaf>a- 
nischcn  Hofe,"  by  O.  von  Mohl,  who  was  entrusted  during  the  eighties  of  the  past 
century  with  the  delicate  task  of  reorganising  the  etiquette  of  the  Imperial  Japanese 
Court  on  European  lines,  may  perhaps  interest  the  general  reader. 

Mineral  Springs.  Japan,  the  land  of  volcanoes  and  earth- 
quakes, is  naturally  rich  in  mineral  springs  :  and  the  Japanese,  with 
their  passion  for  bathing,  make  the  fullest  use  of  them.  The 
most  noted  of  the  many  hundreds  of  Japanese  spas  are  : — for  sul- 
phur baths,  Kusatsu,  Ashinoyu,  Yumoto  near  Nikko,  Nasu,  Shiobara, 
and  Unzen  near  Nagasaki ;  for  iron  baths,  Ikao,  Arima,  and  Beppu ; 
for  salt  baths,  Atami  and  Isobe.  Miyanoshita,  one  of  those  best- 
known  to  foreigners,  has  only  traces  of  salt  and  soda.  Its  waters 
may  therefore  be  used  without  medical  advice,  simply  for  plea- 
sure's sake.     There  are  powerful  iron  and  sulphur  springs  at  Oji- 


320  Mineral  Springs. 

goku  (lit.  "  big  hell "),  some  four  miles  beyond  Miyanoshita.  The 
crater  of  Shirane-san  in  the  province  of  Kotsuke  has  a  pool  so  rich 
in  hydrochloric  acid  (2J  per  cent,  according  to  Dr.  Divers,  F.R.S.), 
that  it  may  be  administered  as  an  excellent  lemonade  in  the 
treatment  of  stomach  and  other  affections.  But  speaking  general- 
ly, sulphur,  iron  sulphate,  and  salt  are  everywhere  the  chief 
minerals  found  in  the  Japanese  springs.  Excepting  the  Hirano 
water  used  for  Seltzer,  very  few  contain  carbonic  acid  gas.  Few 
are  cold  ;  few  are  efficacious,  like  Vichy  and  Karlsbad,  in  diseases 
of  the  stomach  and  liver.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Kusatsu  waters 
probably  stand  alone  in  the  world  by  reason  of  their  double 
character,  consisting,  as  they  do,  of  cold  corrosively  acid  water 
and  nearly  boiling  sulphur  water.  Little  short  of  miraculous  are 
the  cures  which,  by  virtue  of  their  temperature  and  their  mineral 
acids,  sulphur,  and  arsenic,  they  are  capable  of  working,  when 
mixed,  upon  syphilitic  persons  and  on  those  afflicted  with  the 
severer  forms  of  rheumatism.  The  Japanese  have  a  proverb  to  the 
effect  that  love  is  the  only  grave  distemper  against  which  Kusatsu 
can  effect  nothing. 

In  many  cases  a  spring  is  famous  in  its  own  neighbourhood 
only.  But  it  then  almost  invariably  gains  in  one  way  what  it  loses 
in  another.  The  good  country  folk  for  twenty  miles  around  consider 
it  a  panacea  for  all  the  ills  to  which  flesh  is  heir.  It  is  impos- 
sible to  picture  to  oneself  anything  more  grotesquely  dissimilar 
to  an  Ems  or  a  Homburg  than  one  of  these  tiny  spas,  perched — 
say — amidst  the  mountains  of  Shinshu  or  Etchvi,  and  visited  only 
by  Japanese  of  the  most  old-fashioned  type  and  limited  means — 
where,  instead  of  a  table  d  'hote,  each  guest  is  served  in  his  own 
poor  room  with  a  bowl  of  rice  or  maybe  millet,  a  scrap  of  salted 
egg-plant,  and  perhaps,  on  high  days  and  holidays,  a  small 
broiled  fish.  Even  this  is  luxury  compared  with  the  state  of 
things  existing  in  some  remote  districts,  where  the  peasant  invalids 
come  bringing  their  own  rice  and  bedding  with  them  on  pack- 
horses,  and  pay  only  five  cents  a  day  for  lodging,  for  the  use 
of  the  mineral  spring,  and  a  titbit  or  two  at  each  meal  to  help 
the  rice  down. 


Mirrors. 


32 


In  opposition  to  all  European  sanitary  ideas,  the  mineral  springs 
of  Japan  are  used  at  very  high  temperatures.  Invalids  enter 
baths  of  from  no°  to  1150  Fahrenheit,  and  their  healthy  friends 
go  in  with  them  for  the  sake  of  killing  time  agreeably.  At 
Kusatsu  the  temperature  of  the  baths  is  higher  still.  It  ranges 
from  1200  to  1300  Fahrenheit;  and  as  the  first  effect  of  the  waters 
is  to  bring  out  sores  all  over  the  body,  even  if  there  were  none 
before,  the  sufferings  of  those  condemned  to  "make  a  cure"  may 
be  imagined.  So  excruciating  is  the  agony  that  experience  has 
dictated  a  peculiar  device  for  meeting  it : — the  bathers  are 
subjected  to  military  discipline.  The  squad  of  unfortunates 
approaches  the  bath  to  the  sound  of  the  trumpet,  they  wet  their  scalps 
and  foreheads  at  another  trumpet  blast,  in  order  to  prevent  a  rush 
of  blood  to  the  head,  and  so  on  throughout  the  performance, 
notice  being  given  to  them  of  the  passing  of  the  minutes  while 
they  sit  boiling,  with  a  view  to  keeping  up  their  courage  by  the 
knowledge  that  the  ordeal  will  soon  be  over.  The  whole  life 
at  Kusatsu  is  so  strange  that  he  whose  stomach  is  not  easily  upset 
by  nasty  sights  would  do  well  to  go  and  inspect  it.  To  squeamish 
persons  we  say  most  emphatically,  "  Keep  away  !  " 

Book  recommended.     Murray's  Handbook  for  Japan,  passim. 

Mirrors.  Old-fashioned  Japanese  mirrors  are  circular,  and 
are  made  of  metal, — generally  of  bronze  coated  on  the  front  with 
an  amalgam  of  tin  and  quicksilver  beautifully  polished.  The  back 
is  adorned  in  relief  with  flowers,  birds,  or  Chinese  characters,  and 
there  is  a  handle  on  one  side,  the  general  appearance  being 
that  of  a  sort  of  handsome  metal  fan. 

An  extraordinary  peculiarity  characterises  some  of  these  Japanese 
mirrors  :  sunlight  reflected  from  their  face  displays  a  luminous 
image  of  the  design  on  their  back!  So  strange  a  phenomenon 
has  naturally  attracted  the  attention  of  men  of  science.  After 
much  speculation,  it  has  been  clearly  proved  by  Professors  Ayrton 
and  Perry  to  arise  from  the  fact  that  the  curvature  of  the  face 
of  the  mirror  over  the  plain  part  of  the  back  is  greater  than  over 


322 


Missions. 


the  design.  The  mirror  is  cast  flat,  and  then  rendered  convex 
before  polishing,  by  being  so  strongly  scratched  with  an  iron 
tool  as  to  cause  a  buckling  of  the  metal  into  a  convex  form, 
which  convexity  is  afterwards  increased  by  rubbing  in  mercury 
repeatedly.  The  effect  of  both  these  processes  is  greater  on  the 
thinner  parts  of  the  mirror  than  on  the  parts  over  the  raised 
design.  Hence  the  unequal  convexity,  which  gives  the  reflection 
of  the  design  from  the  face  of  the  mirror. 

Books  recommended.  On  the  Magic  Mirrors  of  Japan,  by  Professors  Ayr  ton 
and  Perry,  in  the  "Proceedings  of  the  Royal  Society,"  Vol.  XXVII.  pp.  127 — 142. 
Expansion  produced  by  Amalgamation,  by  the  same  authors,  in  the  "Philosophical 
Magazine,"  Vol.  XXII.  p.  327. 

Missions.  (I.  Roman  Catholic)  When  the  first  Portuguese 
reached  Japan  in  1542,  one  Anjiro,  a  native  of  Kagoshima  in  Satsu- 
ma,  who  had  many  sins  on  his  conscience,  heard  through  them 
of  the  fame  of  Francis  Xavier,  "the  Apostle  of  the  Indies," 
and  started  for  Malacca  in  quest  of  this  wonderful  soul-doctor. 
After  missing  Xavier  once  (he  being  then  in  the  Moluccas),  Anjiro 
ultimately  met  him  at  Malacca  in  1547.  The  reports  of  Japan 
brought  to  Xavier  by  this  Japanese  and  by  certain  Portuguese 
merchants  aroused  in  his  breast  a  desire  to  evangelise  the  island 
empire.  Accordingly  Anjiro,  who  already  knew  something  of 
the  Portuguese  language,  was  sent  for  further  instruction  to  the 
Jesuit  College  at  Goa,  where  he  and  his  servant,  together  with 
a  third  Japanese,  received  baptism.  In  April,  1549,  Xavier, 
accompanied  by  these  three  and  by  two  compatriots  of  his  own, — 
one  of  whom  was  a  monk, — left  Goa  for  Japan.  The  party  reached 
Kagoshima  in  August  of  the  same  year,  and  during  Xavier's 
twelve  months'  stay  in  that  province  about  150  natives  were 
baptised.  The  total  result  of  his  twenty-six  months'  sojourn  in 
Japan  was  nearly  1,000  converts.  In  the  winter  of  15  50-1  he 
made  an  extremely  arduous  journey  to  Kyoto,  the  capital ;  but 
it  proved  fruitless  from  a  religious  point  of  view.  His  long 
stay  at  Yamaguchi  in  Western  Japan  (155 1)  produced  600 
baptisms.     At  Hirado  there  were  about  200. 


Missions.  323 

The  seed  thus  sown  grew  apace.  Thirty  years  later,  in  1582, 
the  "  Annual  Letter "  sent  from  Japan  to  the  Jesuit  headquarters 
at  Rome  puts  the  number  of  converts  in  the  empire  at  150,000, 
more  or  less.  This  certainly  was  a  wonderful  harvest,  especially 
when  the  paucity  of  the  reapers  is  taken  into  consideration.  In 
this  year  of  1582  there  were,  indeed,  as  many  as  75  members  of 
the  Company  of  Jesus  in  the  country,  some  30  of  whom  were 
Japanese.  But  down  to  1577  there  had  never  been  more  than 
eighteen,  and  down  to  1563  no  more  than  nine.  Of  the  150,000 
converts,  about  25,000  were  in  Central  Japan,  10,000  in  the 
province  of  Bungo  (North-Eastern  Kyushu),  and  the  remainder 
in  certain  small  maritime  fiefs  in  Kyushu, — Omura,  Arima, 
Amakusa,  and  the  Goto  Islands.  The  method  of  conversion 
adopted  in  these  fiefs  was  simple.  The  local  princelets  were  eager 
for  the  Portuguese  trade,  and  the  merchants  loyally  co-operated 
with  the  Jesuit  missionaries.  The  plan  pursued  by  these  last  was 
to  convert  the  rulers,  and  then  get  them  to  proscribe  all  non- 
Christian  cults  within  their  domains.  In  some  cases,  only  a  single 
day's  notice  was  granted  for  those  who  would  not  adopt  the  foreign 
religion  to  quit  their  ancestral  homes,  the  images  of  Buddha 
were  hacked  to  pieces,  and  the  native  temples  given  over  to 
the  flames.  In  Central  Japan,  where  there  was  no  foreign  trade, 
the  conversions  seem  often  to  have  been  the  result  of  honest 
conviction ;  but  the  modus  operandi  was  the  same.  Hence  the 
fact,  inexplicable  at  first  sight,  that  of  24,000  converts  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Ky5to,  no  less  than  18,000  were  upon  one 
small  fief.     Kyoto  itself  never  contained  more  than  300  believers. 

The  celebrated  ruler  Nobunaga  (see  p.  234)  treated  the  Christ- 
ians with  marked  favour.  On  his  death  in  1582,  Hideyoshi,  a 
greater  ruler  still,  assumed  the  direction  of  affairs.  He,  too, 
befriended  the  missionaries  during  the  first  five  years  of  his 
sway ;  consequently,  his  sudden  suppression  of  Christianity  in 
1587  came  like  a  bolt  from  the  blue.  The  account  given  of  this 
circumstance  by  Froez,  a  leading  Jesuit,  is  as  follows  : — One  of 
Hideyoshi's  Court  physicians,  a  bigoted  Buddhist,    "  had  noticed 


324  Missions. 

"that  the  Fathers  were  devoting  most  of  their  efforts  to  the 
"  conversion  of  men  of  noble  birth ;  and,  believing  that  their 
"  pretext  of  saving  souls  was  merely  a  device  for  the  conquest 
"of  Japan,  he  had  done  his  best  to  rouse  Hideyoshi's  suspicions.'' 
The  latter  "  had  at  first  merely  laughed  at  him  ;  "  but  "  when 
"he  arrived  in  Kyushu  against  the  King  of  Satsuma,  and  noted 
"that  many  lords  with  their  vassals  had  become  Christians,  and 
"  that  the  same  were  bound  to  each  other  in  great  concord  and 
"  exceedingly  devoted  to  the  Fathers,  he  began  to  recall  what 
"  Toquun  had  already  filled  his  ears  with,  and  to  understand  (al- 
"  though  in  this  he  was  auguring  falsely)  that  the  propagation  of 
"the  faith  would  be  prejudicial  to  the  safety  of  the  Empire. 
"And  this  is  the  true  cause  of  the  aversion  he  now  declares." 
Nevertheless,  the  persecution  foreshadowed  by  this  change  of 
sentiment  on  the  ruler's  part  was  delayed  ten  years.  Despite  his 
suspicions  of  the  missionaries'  ulterior  aims,  Hideyoshi  clung  to 
the  present  advantages  which  accrued  to  his  realm  from  the 
Portuguese  trade,  and  he  temporarily  shut  his  eyes  to  the 
presence  of  130  or  140  Jesuits  on  Japanese  soil. 

Meantime,  mischief  had  been  brewing  in  another  quarter.  A 
Papal  Bull,  promulgated  in  1585,  had  given  the  Jesuits  a  mono- 
poly of  missionary  work  in  Japan,  and  the  terms  of  the  Concordat 
entered  into  between  Spain  and  Portugal  in  1580  on  the  occasion 
of  the  union  of  the  two  crowns  confined  the  Japan  trade  to  members 
of  the  latter  nation.  However,  in  the  year  1593,  the  intrigues 
of  a  Japanese  adventurer  anxious  for  trade  with  the  Philippine 
Islands,  then  a  Spanish  possession,  led  to  the  despatch  from 
Manila  of  four  Spanish  Franciscan  monks,  not  indeed  as  mis- 
sionaries but  as  ambassadors.  They  were  permitted  to  proceed 
to  Kyoto,  on  the  express  condition  of  engaging  in  no  proselytising 
work ;  but  this  pledge  they  violated  in  the  most  flagrant  manner. 
Hideyoshi's  attention  was  called  to  their  doings  in  October, 
1596,  by  an  incident  which  has  remained  famous.  A  Spanish 
galleon,  called  the  "San  Felipe,"  had  been  stranded  on  the 
Japanese  coast,  and  her  cargo,  including  600,000  crowns  in  silver, 


Missions.  325 

had  been  confiscated.  In  the  absence  of  the  captain,  the  pilot 
endeavoured  to  overawe  the  local  Japanese  authorities.  He 
produced  a  map  of  the  world,  and  pointed  out  the  vast  extent 
of  the  Spanish  monarch's  dominions.  On  being  asked  how  it  was 
that  so  many  countries  had  been  subjected  to  a  single  ruler,  he 
"  replied  :  "  Our  kings  begin  by  sending  into  the  countries  they 
"wish  to  conquer  priests  who  induce  the  people  to  embrace 
"  our  religion  ;  and  when  these  have  made  considerable  progress, 
"troops  are  despatched  who  combine  with  the  new  Christians, 
"and  then  our  kings  have  not  much  trouble  in  accomplishing 
"the  rest.*''  This  speech  was  reported  to  Hideyoshi,  whose  fury 
knew  no  bounds.  The  immediate  outcome  was  that  six  Spanish 
Franciscans,  together  with  seventeen  of  their  native  converts  and 
three  Japanese  Jesuits,  were  crucified  at  Nagasaki  on  the  5th 
February,   1597. 

To  this  first  outbreak  of  persecution  there  succeeded  a  respite 
of  several  years,  traceable  partly  to  the  civil  wars  and  other 
distractions  that  accompanied  the  establishment  of  the  Shogunate 
in  the  family  of  Tokugawa  Ieyasu.  This  powerful  ruler  suppressed 
Christianity  for  political  reasons  in  16 14,  ordering  the  deportation 
of  all  the  foreign  ecclesiastics.  But  47  contrived  to  remain 
behind  at  Nagasaki  and  elsewhere,  and  the  others  quickly  returned. 
Meantime,  some  of  the  native  Christian  lords  had  been  seeking  to 
establish  relations  abroad,  the  most  noted  of  these  efforts  being 
the  despatch  of  envoys  from  the  Kyushu  Princes  to  the  Pope  in 
1582,  and  that  of  Date,  Lord  of  Sendai,  to  the  King  of  Spain 
and  the  Pope  in  1613.  When  Ieyasu  finally  triumphed  over  all 
his  political  enemies,  with  some  of  whom  the  Catholics  had  been 
associated,  a  duel  to  the  death  began  between  the  Japanese 
authorities  who  were  resolved  to  maintain  the   political    integrity 

*  Though  not  to  be  taken  literally,  there  was  doubtless  a  foundation  of  fact  for  the 
statement  thus  imprudently  blurted  out : — the  rulers  of  Spain  and  Portugal,  as  we  know 
full  well  from  their  proceedings  in  other  quarters  of  the  globe,  were  anything  but 
single-minded  in  their  dealings  with  native  races.  History  repeats  itself;  foi  the 
conduct  of  Europe  towards  China  in  our  own  day  exhibits  precisely  the  same  medley 
of  genuine  piety  on  the  part  of  the  missionaries,  and  shameless  aggression  on  the  part 
of  the  countries  which  send  them  out. 


326  Missions. 

of  the  Empire  which  they  believed  to  be  menaced,  and  the  foreign 
priests  equally  resolved  to  discharge  what  they  held  to  be  their 
duty  to  God.  This  contest  lasted  for  nearly  thirty  years,  the 
missionaries  displaying  intrepid  devotion,  and  many  of  the  converts 
a  remarkable  constancy.  At  its  most  flourishing  period  (before 
the  persecution  of  1597),  Christianity  in  Japan  numbered  300,000 
converts.  One  Japanese  record  tells  us  that  no  fewer  than  200,000 
persons  were  "  punished  "  for  the  crime  of  Christianity.  "  Pun- 
ished," however,  evidently  cannot  mean  "  executed ; "  for  the 
Jesuit  Father  Cardim's  list  of  martyrs  gives  only  between  1,400 
and  1,500  victims.  It  is  plain,  from  the  missionary  records 
themselves,  that  the  Japanese  authorities  were  far  from  eager  to 
proceed  to  extremities.  Even  at  the  last  moment  those  converts 
who  consented  to  abandon  their  belief  were  spared,  and  such  few 
ecclesiastics  as  apostatised  were  granted  a  decent  maintenance. 
But  the  heroic  persistence  of  the  great  majority  forced  the 
government's  hand,  and  (once  the  suppression  of  Christianity 
had  been  decided  on  in  principle)  left  them  no  choice  in  the 
matter.  Two  irreconcilable  ideals  were  at  stake  ;  each  side  was 
fighting  for  what  it  held  most  sacred.  Hence  the  application 
and  the  endurance  on  Japanese  soil  of  tortures  no  less  fiendish 
than  those  with  which  Spanish  and  Portuguese  rulers  had 
extinguished  heresy  in  their  own  dominions.  The  Japanese 
government  emerged  victorious  from  this  deadly  duel ;  but  its 
victory  was  achieved  only  by  the  cessation  of  intercourse  with 
the  outside  world,  and  the  all  but  total  isolation  of  the  Empire. 
Nevertheless,  the  Church  of  Japan  was  not  forgotten.  The 
Jesuit  Father  Sidotti  and  others,  nothing  daunted,  disembarked  on 
the  Japanese  coast  at  intervals  during  the  eighteenth  century,  but 
were  at  once  cast  into  prison.  In  1846  the  Pope  nominated  a 
bishop  and  several  missionaries,  who  took  up  their  station  in  the 
neighbouring  Luchu  Islands,  and  entered  Japan  on  the  signing 
of  the  treaties  of  1858.  These  men  had  the  joy,  in  1865,  to 
discover  several  Christian  communities  round  about  Nagasaki, 
surviving    the    ruin    of  the    church    of  their  forefathers  over   two 


Missions. 


327 


centuries  before.  They  had  preserved  certain  prayers,  the  rite  of 
baptism,  and  a  few  books.  But  if  these  Christian  communities 
survived,  the  persecuting  spirit  survived  also.  In  1867-70,  all 
those  Christians — and  they  numbered  over  four  thousand — who 
refused  to  forswear  the  faith,  were  torn  from  their  native  villages 
and  distributed  over  various  provinces  of  the  empire,  where  they 
were  kept  as  prisoners  by  the  respective  Daimyos.  After  some 
years  of  exile,  they  were  at  length  set  at  liberty  in  1873.  The 
Church  of  Japan,  thus  restored,  is  now  slowly  but  surely 
developing,  thanks  to  the  toleration  enjoyed  under  the  Imperial 
Government. 

The  Church  was  governed  from  1846  to  1877  by  a  single 
bishop,  from  1877  to  1888  by  two  bishops,  from  1888  to  1891 
by  three,  and  since  1891  by  an  archbishop  (assisted  by  a  bishop 
coadjutor)  and  three  bishops,  whose  respective  residences  are  at 
Tokyo,  Osaka,  Nagasaki,  and  Sendai.  The  Catholic  population 
of  the  empire  amounted,  in  1903,  to  58,000  souls,  as  against 
44,300  in  1891.  They  are  grouped  in  some  360  stations  or 
congregations,  spread  more  or  less  all  over  the  country,  but  most 
thickly  in  the  island  of  Kyushu.  The  clergy  consists — besides 
the  archbishop  and  bishops — of  129  European  missionaries  and 
32  Japanese  priests.  The  missionaries  are  all  seculars  belonging 
to  the  Societe  des  Missions  Etrangeres  de  Paris*  There  are  also 
70  European  teachers,  of  whom  18  Cistercian  friars  devoted  to 
agriculture  in  the  island  of  Yezo,  and  197  nuns  (of  whom  145 
are  European  and  52  Japanese)  engaged  in  teaching.  The 
missionaries  are  assisted  by  280  male  catechists,  besides  265 
women  employed  as  catechists  and  in  nursing  the  sick.  The 
Catholic  educational  establishments  include  three  seminaries  for 
native  priests,  where  60  students  are  now  pursuing  their  course, 
and  58  other  schools  and  orphanages,  with  an  attendance  of 
about  6,000  pupils.  There  exist  furthermore  two  lepers'  homes, 
where  147  lepers  are  cared  for,  and  several  small  hospitals. 

*  The  summary  here  given  does  not  include  the  island  of  Formosa,  whore  there  are 
old-established  missions  in  the  hands  of  Spanish  Dominican  friars- 


328  Missions. 

II.  Anglican.  The  Church  of  England,  in  conjunction  with 
the  Episcopal  Churches  of  America  and  Canada,  has  missions 
collectively  designated  by  the  title  of  Nihon  Sei  Kokwai,  or  the 
Church  of  Japan.  The  origin  of  this  church  goes  back  to  the 
year  1859,  when  two  American  clergymen  settled  in  Nagasaki, 
The  missions  in  Tokyo,  both  American  and  English,  were  started 
at  the  same  time,  in  1873.  There  are  now  six  bishops — two 
American  and  four  English, — some  64  foreign  and  50  Japanese 
priests  and  deacons,  and  87  foreign  lay  workers  of  both  sexes, 
besides  a  large  body  of  Japanese  catechists  and  school-teachers, 
and  over  11,000  baptised  persons  on  the  roll.  The  increase  in 
numbers  has  been  steady  during  the  past  few  years,  as  has  also  the 
amount  contributed  from  native  sources  for  self-support.  The  affairs 
of  the  Church  are  managed  by  a  synod  consisting  of  the  bishops 
and  of  delegates  from  the  clergy  and  laity,  both  foreign  and 
Japanese.  These  delegates  are  themselves  elected  at  the  local 
synods,  which  are  presided  over  by  their  respective  bishops,  and 
held  annually  in  the  various  jurisdictions  of  North  and  South 
Tokyo,  Kyoto,  Osaka,  Kyushu,  and  Hokkaido,  into  which  the 
whole  country  has  now  been  divided.  The  general  synod  meets 
once  in  three  years.  The  aim  of  the  Church  is  to  be  in  com- 
munion with,  but  not  in  subjection  to,  the  Churches  of  England 
and  America, — in  fact,  to  occupy  in  Japan  much  the  same  position 
as  the  Anglican  Chuch  occupies  in  the  United  States.  The 
Japanese  Prayer  Book  is  based,  with  necessary  modifications,,  on 
those  of  the  Anglican  and  American  Churches. 

III.  Protestant.  In  1859,  shortly  after  the  arrival  of  the 
earliest  Anglican  missionaries,  representatives  of  the  American 
Presbyterian  and  Dutch  Reformed  Churches  landed  in  Japan, 
and  the  Protestant  missions  have  ever  since  continued  to  be 
chiefly  in  American  hands.  The  first  baptism  took  place  in 
1864,  the  first  native  church  was  organised  at  Yokohama  in 
1872,  and  the  first  church  building  was  consecrated  in  1875. 
In  1872  the  work  of  Biblical  translation,  till  then  hindered  by 
want    of  sufficient    familiarity   with  the  language,  was  vigorously 


Missions.  329 

undertaken.  It  should  be  added  that  the  existence  of  several 
Chinese  versions,  which  all  educated  Japanese  could  read,  render- 
ed the  necessity  for  a  version  in  the  vernacular  less  urgent  than 
would  have  been  the  case  in  other  lands.  A  complete  version 
of  the  New  Testament  was  published  in  1880,  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment in  1887.*  Meanwhile  the  opposition  of  the  government  to 
Christianity  faded  away,  and  the  number  of  converts  increased, — 
slowly  at  first,  for  in  1872  no  more  than  ten  persons  had  been 
baptised,  but  afterwards  by  leaps  and  bounds.  Besides  actual 
evangelising  work,  much  general  school  work  has  been  engaged 
in.  The  venerable  Dr.  Hepburn  and  others  have  also  combined 
the  art  of  healing  bodies  with  that  of  curing  souls.  The  educa- 
tional efforts  of  the  missionaries  have  met  with  amazing  success, 
even  allowing  for  an  interval  of  disappointment  during  the  last 
decade  of  the  nineteenth  century,  consequent  on  the  spread  of 
chauvinistic  feeling  and  the  difficulty  of  conforming  to  school 
standards  insisted  on  by  a  non-Christian  Government.  Obstruc- 
tions of  this  nature  have  now  been  removed,  the  higher 
departments  of  certain  Christian  colleges  (including  at  least  one 
theological  school)  having  even  received  formal  official  recognition, 
and  been  accorded  equal  rank  in  the  national  educational  system 
with  those  government  colleges  that  represent  the  grade  immediate- 
ly below  the  Imperial  Universities.  Thus  their  scholars  share  in 
the  much-prized  privilege  of  postponement  of  the  call  to  military 
service  until  the  completion  of  eight  years  of  school  life. 

The  leading  Protestant  denominations  having  missions  in  Japan 
may  be  classified  under  four  heads,  which  we  notice  in  the  order 
of  their  local  importance  : — 

The  Presbyterians,  representing  seven  religious  societies,  number 
55   male  and  53    female    missionaries^   whose   labours  are  aided 

•  Unfortunately  the  Japanese  language,  intricate  and  impersonal,  is  singularly  ill-fitted 
to  reproduce  the  rugged  sublimity  of  Hebrew  thought.  Chinese  lends  itself  somewhat 
better  to  the  task. 

t  If  the  wives  of  married  missionaries  be  included  in  the  enumeration,  the  number 
of  female  missionaries  in  this  and  the  other  Protestant  missions  will  be  considerably 
increased. 


330  Missions. 

by  those  of  38  ordained  and  112  unordained  Japanese  fellow- 
workers, — the  whole  force  being  distributed  over  74  organised 
churches,  besides  many  out-stations.  In  1903  (the  last  year  for 
which  statistics  are  available),  the  total  membership  numbered 
over  12,400,  and  contributed  during  that  year  a  sum  of  34,800 
yen.  They  supported  3  boarding-schools  for  boys  and  11  for 
girls,  together  with  10  day-schools,  the  aggregate  number  of 
scholars  being  2,289.  The  various  Presbyterian  bodies — American 
and  Scotch — amalgamated  in  the  year  1877  into  a  single  church, 
which  is  now  known  as  the  Nihon  Kirisuto  Kydkwai,  or  Church 
of  Christ  in  Japan,  and  which,  no  longer  insisting  on  such 
standards  of  doctrine  as  the  Canons  of  the  Synod  of  Dort, 
the  Westminster  Confession  of  Faith,  the  Shorter  Catechism,  or 
the  Heidelberg  Catechism,  confines  itself  to  a  much  simpler 
"Confession   of  Faith,"  consisting  mainly  of  the  Apostles  Creed. 

The  Congregational  or  Kumi-ai  Churches  are  associated  ex- 
clusively with  one  body, — the  mission  of  the  American  Board  of 
Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions.  In  1903  there  were  23  male 
and  25  female  workers  on  the  staff,  besides  48  ordained  and  41 
unordained  Japanese.  There  are  106  organised  churches,  38  of 
which  are  self-supporting,  and  over  11,400  members,  who  in 
1903  contributed  41,800  yen.  The  Doshisha  College  at  Kyoto 
— by  far  the  largest  Christian  institution  in  Japan — is  under 
the  control  of  this  mission. 

The  Methodists,  representing  six  American  societies  and  one 
Canadian,  consist  of  59  male  and  71  female  missionaries,  126 
ordained  and  10 1  unordained  Japanese  fellow- workers,  139 
organised  churches,  and  over  9,600  members,  who  in  1903 
contributed  36,600  yen.  The  Methodists  have  18  boarding- 
schools  and  19  day-schools,  with  a  total  of  4,761  scholars.  To 
them  belongs  the  Aoyama  Gakuin,  the  most  important  Christian 
College  in  Tokyo. 

The  Baptists  represent  four  American  societies,  and  number  36 
male  and  24  female  missionaries,  with  28  ordained  and  45  un- 
ordained   Japanese    workers    in    55    organised    churches,    with    a 


Missions.  331 

membership  of  over  3,361,  who  in  1903  contributed  5,681  yen. 
The  two  leading  Baptist  bodies  support  a  theological  seminary 
with  1 8  students,  one  academy  for  boys,  five  boarding-schools  for 
girls,  with  a  total  of  302  students,  and  eight  day-schools  with 
588  pupils. 

The  Salvation  Army,  which  invaded  Japan  in  1895,  has  now 
15  corps  here  with  51  officers.  Ten  thousand  copies  of  the  Toki 
no  Koe  (the  Japanese  edition  of  the  "  War-Cry  ")  are  published 
fortnightly.  The  Army  has  deserved  well  of  Japan  by  the  stout 
fight  which  it  has  made  and  still  makes  to  rescue  girls  from  the 
thraldom  of  licensed  immorality. 

Besides  the  above,  must  be  mentioned  the  Society  of  Friends ; 
furthermore,  the  American  and  London  Religious  Tract  Societies, 
which  have  joint  headquarters  at  Tokyo,  and  the  Young  Mens 
Christian  Association  of  Japan,  etc.,  the  total  number  of  missions 
represented  being  twenty-eight. 

Numerous  as  are  the  Protestant  bodies  labouring  on  Japanese 
soil,  and  widely  as  some  of  them  differ  in  doctrine,  fairness 
requires  it  to  be  stated  that  they  rarely,  if  ever,  have  made  Japan 
the  scene  of  sectarian  strife.  The  tendency  has  been  rather  to 
minimise  differences, — a  tendency  exemplified  in  the  amalgamation 
of  the  various  Presbyterian  churches  and  of  the  various  Episcopal 
churches,  the  proposed  amalgamation  of  the  Methodist  churches, 
and  the  cementing  influence  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian 
Association  work  and  of  the  General  Conferences  of  all  denomina- 
tions held  from  time  to  time.  At  one  period,  orthodoxy  and 
union  were  menaced  by  the  advent  of  the  so-called  "Liberal 
Churches," — the  Unitarians  and  Universalisis  (1889-90), — who 
for  a  brief  season  seemed  likely  to  obtain  a  hold  over  the 
Japanese  mind.  But  the  Unitarian  mission  is  now  extinct,  and 
the  Universalists  have  little  or  no  following.  The  German 
Evangelical  Mission,  while  numbering  few  actual  converts,  claims 
(with  what  justice  we  have  no  means  of  estimating)  to  have  exerted 
a  strong  influence  upon  the  thought  of  the  Christian  community, 
and  even  upon  others  outside  the  Christian  pale. 


332  Missions. 

IV.  The  Orthodox  Russian  Church,  presided  over  by  Bishop 
Nicolai',  and  served  by  37  native  priests  and  deacons,  has  had 
a  mission  in  Japan  ever  since  the  year  1861.  It  claims  a  total 
following  of  over  27,000.  The  Russian  cathedral,  which  was 
opened  for  worship  in  1891,  is  the  only  ecclesiastical  edifice  in 
Tokyo  with  any  pretensions  to  splendour.  From  the  eminence 
on  which  it  stands,  it  seems  to  dominate  the  whole  city. 

V.  General  Considerations.  To  those  who  can  look  back 
forty,  or  even  only  thirty  years,  the  varying  fortunes  through  wrhich 
Christianity  has  passed  in  Japan  are  most  striking,  indeed  well- 
nigh  incredible.  As  late  as  1870,  it  was  perilous  for  a  Japanese 
to  confess  Jesus.  Later  on,  such  confession  became  rather 
fashionable  than  otherwise.  Then  it  was  hard  for  a  missionary  to 
obtain  a  native  teacher.  Now  there  are  hundreds  of  ordained 
and  unordained  native  preachers  and  teachers  of  Christianity. 
The  old  proclamation,  which,  since  A.  D.  1638,  had  prohibited 
the  religion  of  Jesus  as  "  an  evil  sect,"  was  still  posted  on  the 
notice-boards  of  the  public  thoroughfares  in  1873.  The  govern- 
ment now  openly  tolerates  the  building  of  churches  and  the 
performance  of  Christian  funeral  rites,  in  accordance  with  Article 
XXVIII  of  the  new  Constitution,  which  decrees  that  "Japanese 
subjects  shall,  within  limits  not  prejudicial  to  peace  and  order, 
and  not  antagonistic  to  their  duties  as  subjects,  enjoy  freedom  of 
religious  belief.''  Such  were  the  strides  made  during  the  decade 
from  1878  to  1888  as  to  suggest  the  notion  that  in  future  the 
danger  might  be,  no  longer  from  persecution,  but  from  worldly- 
minded  favour.  Some  of  the  leaders  of  Japanese  thought,  while 
professing  themselves  personally  indifferent  to  all  religions,  used 
then  cold-bloodedly  to  advocate  the  adoption  of  Christianity  as  a 
school  of  morals  and  music,  and  as  likely  to  be  advantageous 
in  political  negotiations  with  the  powers  of  the  West !  To  make 
all  Japan  Christian  by  edict  some  fine  morning,  might  not  have 
been  on  the  programme  of  the  Japanese  statesmen  of  the  hour  ; 
but  that  something  of  the  kind  should  happen  before  the  end  of 
the  century,  appeared  far  less  unlikely  than  many  things  that  have 


Missions. 


333 


actually  happened  in  this  land  of  realised  improbabilities.  But 
1888  witnessed  a  reaction  in  every  department  of  Japanese  life 
and  thought.  Angry  with  Europe  for  the  recent  failure  of  treaty 
revision,  the  leading  classes  then  turned  their  backs  on  all  such 
European  things  as  appeared  to  them  non-essential, — not  on  the 
electric  light  of  course,  or  on  banking,  or  surgery,  or  anything  of 
evident  material  utility,  but  on  European  dress,  European  cookery, 
European  amusements,  European  ideals.  Christianity,  being  alien 
and  non-utilitarian,  has  come  in  for  its  share  of  this  cold  wave. 
While  the  population  grows  rapidly,  the  number  of  the  converts 
grows  slowly.  This  spirit,  too,  has  changed,  their  regard  for 
the  missionaries  has  cooled,  they  desire  to  walk  alone.  Not 
only  so : — they  wish  to  Japonise  Christianity  itself,  in  essence 
as  well  as  in  outward  form,  and  seem  inclined  to  throw  over- 
board even  that  minimum  of  dogma  on  which  the  Protestant 
missionaries  feel  bound  to  insist.  Evidently  a  modern  Bossuet 
would  find  in  Japan  materials  for  a  new  chapter  on  the  Variations 
of  Protestantism  within  the  space  of  a  single  generation. 

Prophesying  is  no  safe  occupation  nowadays.  Nevertheless, 
we  hazard  a  guess  to  the  effect  that  in  the  future  the  Protestants 
of  Japan  will  be  occupied  with  questions  of  morals  and  practice — 
the  temperance  question,  for  instance,  and  Sunday  observance — 
rather  than  with  subtle  doctrinal  theories,  the  Japanese  mind 
being  too  essentially  unspeculative  for  the  fine  distinctions  of  the 
theologians  to  have  any  charm  for  it,  much  less  for  it  to  seek  to 
split  new  hairs  for  itself.  The  failure  of  Buddhist  metaphysical 
abstractions  to  take  any  hold  of  the  national  sympathies,  is  a 
finger-post  in  history  pointing  ,to  what  may  be  expected  in  the 
future.  People  will  never  greatly  excite  themselves  about  beliefs 
that  sit  lightly  on  them  ;  and  Japanese  religious  beliefs  have  always 
sat  lightly.  Has  not  the  whole  attitude  of  the  Far-Eastern  mind 
with  regard  to  the  supernatural  been  aptly  described  as  one  of 
"  politeness  towards  possibilities  ? "  Doubtless  this  natural  dis- 
inclination to  a  spiritual  religion  on  the  part  of  the  Chinese  and 
Japanese    is    aided    and    abetted    by  special  local  causes.     There 


334  Missions. 

may  be  a  measure  of  truth  in  the  assertion  often  made  in  religious 
circles  that  missionary  enterprise  is  impeded  by  the  openly  im- 
moral lives  of  many  of  the  (so-called)  Christian  residents.  We  feel 
absolutely  certain  of  another  thing,  namely,  that  missionary  enter- 
prise is  impeded  by  the  openly  immoral  politics  of  the  (so-called) 
Christian  nations.  When  Protestant  England  grabs  at  Hongkong, 
Weihaiwei,  and  Thibet,  while  "  Holy "  Russia  grabs  at  sundry 
other  provinces  of  a  country  which  has  never  done  either  of  the 
aggressors  any  harm ;  when  France  and  Germany,  anti-clerical 
at  home,  eagerly  avail  themselves  of  each  bespattered  priest  or 
battered  mission-house  to  exact  some  commercial  advantage  or 
snatch  some  strip  of  territory  abroad,  what  is  the  Far-Eastern  to 
think  ?  He  thinks  precisely  as  we  ourselves  should  think,  mutatis 
mutandis ;  he  thinks,  and  thinks  rightly,  that  our  professions  of 
religion  are  a  mere  cloak  for  vulgar  greed.  The  Japanese 
perhaps,  being  strong  enough  to  protect  themselves,  might  be 
deemed  likely  to  feel  this  consideration  less  than  other  Orientals. 
They  do  feel  it,  however,  as  expressions  of  opinion  in  their  press 
testify  from  time  to  time.  They  feel  that  physical  compulsion 
and  spiritual  influence  cannot  be  successfully  yoked  together, 
that  what  has  come  to  be  known  as  the  "gospel  and  gunboat 
policy  "  is  a  contradiction  in  terms,  and  that  if  the  missionaries 
are  ever  to  assert  themselves  as  an  apostolic  force,  they  must, 
like  the  apostles,  dissociate  their  personal  status  from  all  reliance 
on  alien  intervention.  The  naturalisation  of  the  missionaries  in 
the  land  of  their  labours,  their  complete  subjection  to  native 
law,  and  rejection  of  all  diplomatic  interference  on  their  behalf, 
would  at  once  enormously  increase  their  influence.  But  doubt- 
less such  a  step  would  be  viewed  with  disfavour  by  home 
politicians,  to  whose  mind  the  sole  advantage  of  missionary  enterprise 
is  that  it  may    open    markets  and  pave  the  way  for    annexation. 

Books  recommended.  (I.  Catholic.)  The  traditional  Catholic  standpoint  is 
embodied  in  Crasset's  Histoire  de  la  Religion  Ckretienne  au  Japon,  Charlevoix' 
Histoire  du  Christianisme  dans  V Empire  du  Japon,  Leon  Pages'  Histoire  de  la  Religion 
Chritiennc  an  Japon,  Mamas'  Religion  de  Je'sus  Ressuscite'e  au  Japon,  and  Steichen's 
Christian  Daimyos.  The  critical  standpoint  is  assumed  in  Murdoch's  History  of  Japan 
during    the     Century    of  Early    European    Intercourse  (r $ 42-1651),    and    in    Haas's 


Moral  Maxims.  335 

Geschichte  des  Christentums  in  Japan. — The  above  are  general  accounts,  or  risumts,  of 
the  subject. — The  literature  of  Catholicism  in  Japan  is  very  voluminous,  beginning  with 
the  "Jesuits'  Letters  in  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries,  and  coming  down  to 
the  special  treatises  by  Leon  Pages,  Satow,  and  others.  Satow's  researches  are,  for 
the  most  part,  scattered  through  the  volumes  of  the  Asiatic  Transactions  ;  but  one  of  his 
most  interesting  essays,  entitled  The  Jesuit  Mission  Press  in  Japan  from  i^Qi  t) 
1 6 to,  giving  extracts  and  facsimiles,  was  printed  privately  as  a  separate  v/ork. 

(II.  Protestant.) — The  Statistics  of  Missions,  published  yearly. — The  Reports  of  the 
various  missionary  societies  and  of  the  General  Conferences  of  1883  and  1900. — A  History 
of  Protestant  Missions  in  Japan,  by  Pastor  H.  Ritter,  Ph.  D.,  translated  by  Rev. 
George  E.  Albrecht,  A.  M.,  revised  and  brought  up  to  date  by  Rev.  D.  C.  Greene, 
D.D. — An  American  Missionary  in  Japan,  by  Rev.  M.  L.  Gordon,  D.D. —  Thirty 
Eventful  Years  in  Japan,  the  Story  of  the  American  Board's  Mission  in  Japan,  by  Rev. 
M.  L.  Gordon,  D.D.— The  Life  cf  Joseph  Hardy  Ncesima*  LL.D.,  by  Arthur  S.  Hardy. 
— Hozv  I  Became  a  Christian,  by  Uchimura  Kanzo. — Die  Japaner.  by  Rev.  C.  Munzinger. 

Moral  Maxims.  Few  Japanese  books  are  more  likely  to 
please  the  foreign  student  than  two  small  volumes  of  practical 
ethics,  entitled  respectively  Jiisu-go  Kyo,  or  "  Teaching  of  the 
Words  of  Truth,"  and  Dbji  Kyo,  or  "Teaching  of  the  Young.'' 
They  are  ascribed  to  Buddhist  abbots  of  the  ninth  century  ;  but 
the  doctrine  of  both  has  a  Confucian  no  less  than  a  Buddhistic 
flavour,  and  many  of  the  maxims  are  transcribed  bodily  from 
Chinese  sources.  Both  collections  were  for  many  ages  as  familiar 
to  the  youth  of  Japan  as  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  is  to  us. 
The  following  may  serve  as  specimens  : — 

"  Treasures  that  are  laid  up  in  a  garner  decay  :  treasures  that 
are  laid  up  in  the  mind  decay  not. 

"  Though  thou  shouldst  heap  up  a  thousand  pieces  of  gold  : 
they  would  not  be  so  precious  as  one  day  of  study. 

"  If  thou,  being  poor,  enter  into  the  abode  of  the  wealthy  : 
remember  that  his  riches  are  more  fleeting  than  the  flower  nipped 
by  the  hoar-frost. 

"  If  thou  be  born  in  the  poor  man's  hovel,  but  have  wisdom  : 
then  shalt  thou  be  like  the  lotus-flower  growing  out  of  the  mud. 

"  Thy  father  and  thy  mother  are  like  heaven  and  earth  :  thy 
teacher  and  thy  lord  are  like  the  sun  and  moon. 

*  Properly  Niishima  or  Niijima  ;  but  the  awkward  transliteration  of  former  days  has 
been  usually  retained  for  this  particular  name. 


336  Moral  Maxims. 

"  Other  kinsfolk  may  be  likened  unto  the  rushes  :  husbands 
and  wives  are  but  useless  stones.* 

"  He  that  loveth  iniquity  beckoneth  to  misfortune  :  it  is,  as  it 
were,  the  echo  answering  to  the  voice. 

"  He  that  practiseth  righteousness  receiveth  a  blessing  :  it 
cometh  as  surely  as  the  shadow  followeth  the  man. 

"  Be  reverent  when  thou  goest  past  a  grave  :  alight  from  thine 
horse  when  thou  goest  past  a  Shinto  shrine. 

"  When  thou  art  near  a  Buddhist  temple  or  pagoda,  thou  shalt 
not  commit  any  unclean  act :  when  thou  readest  the  sacred 
writings,  thou  shalt  do  nothing  unseemly. 

"  Human  ears  are  listening  at  the  wall  :  speak  no  calumny, 
even  in  secret. 

"  Human  eyes  look  down  from  the  heavens  :  commit  no 
wrong,  however  hidden. 

"  When  a  hasty  word  hath  once  been  spoken  :  a  team  of  four 
horses  may  pursue,  but  cannot  bring  it  back. 

"  The  flaw  in  a  mace  of  white  jade  may  be  ground  away  :  but 
the  flaw  of  an  evil  word  cannot  be  ground  away. 

"  Calamity  and  prosperity  have  no  gate  :  they  are  there  only 
whither  men  invite  them. 

"  From  the  evils  sent  by  Heaven  there  is  deliverance  :  from  the 
evils  we  bring  upon  ourselves  there  is  no  escape. 

"  The  gods  punish  fools,  not  to  slay  but  to  chasten  them  :  the 
teacher  smiteth  his  disciple,  not  from  hatred  but  to  make  him  better. 

"Though  the  sins  committed  by  the  wise  man  be  great,  he 
shall  not  fall  into  hell :  though  the  sins  committed  by  the  fool 
be  small,  he  shall  surely  fall  into  hell. 

"  Life,  with  birth  and  death,  is  not  enduring  :  and  ye  should 
haste  to  yearn  after  Nirvana. 

"  The  body,  with  its  passions,  is  not  pure :  and  ye  should 
swiftly  search  after  intelligence. 

*  According  to  the  Confucian  ethical  code,  which  the  Japanese  adopted,  a  man's 
parents,  his  teacher,  and  his  lord  claim  his  lifelong  service,  his  wife  standing  on  an 
immeasurably  lower  piano. 


Mourning.  337 

"Above  all  things,  men  must  practise  charity:  it  is  by  alms- 
giving that  wisdom  is  fed. 

"  Less  than  all  things,  men  must  grudge  money  :  it  is  by 
riches  that  wisdom  is  hindered." 

Books  recommended.  Full  translation  of  the  Dqji  Kyo  in  Vol.  IX.  Part  III.  of 
the  "Asiatic  Transactions,"  and  of  the  Jits:t-go  Kyo  in  the  "Cornhill  Magazine"  for 
August,  1S76. 

Mourning.  The  Japanese,  like  other  nations  under  Chinese 
influence,  are  very  strict  on  the  subject  of  mourning.  Formerly 
three  mourning  codes  {Bukki  Ryo)  prevailed  simultaneously.  Of 
these  one  was  for  Shinto  priests,  another  for  the  Kyoto  nobility, 
and  yet  another  for  the  Daimyos  and  Samurai.  The  last  alone 
has  survived,  and  its  prescriptions  are  still  followed  by  old- 
fashioned  persons.  Mourning,  be  it  remarked,  consists  of  two 
things  —  the  wearing  of  mourning  garments,  and  abstinence 
from  animal  food.  This  premised,  the  following  table  is  self- 
explanatory  : — 

Garments .  Food . 

Great-great-grand  parents*         .  .      .  .  30  days  10  days 

Great-grandparents* 90  ,,  20  „ 

Grandparents* 150  „  30  „ 

Real  parents 13  months  50  ,, 

Adopted  parents       13  ,,  50  „ 

Step-parents      ^o  days  10  „ 

Father's  legitimate  wifef 30  ,,  10  ,, 

Divorced  mother      150  „  30  „ 

(Woman's)  parents-in-law       ....  50  ,,  20  ,, 

Uncle  and  aunt*      90  ,,  20  ,, 

Husband 13  months  50  ,, 

Wife 90  days  20  ,, 

Brothers  and  sisters*       90  ,,  20  „ 

Half-brothers  and  sisters 30  ,,  10  ,, 

Eldest  son •    ..  90  ,,  20  „ 

Other  children $0  ,,  10  ,, 

*  On  the  paternal  side.  The  inferior  status  of  women  in  the  East  causes  a  consider- 
able reduction  to  be  made  in  the  period  cf  mourning  for  corresponding  relatives  on 
the  maternal  side.  A  maternal  grandfather,  for  instance,  is  only  mourned  for  during 
90  days  a  maternal  uncle  during  30  days. 

t  A  man's  legitimate  wife  is  considered  the  "legal  mother"  of  any  children  he  may 
have  by  a  concubine.  Such  children  mo  lrn  their  "legal  mother's"  death  during  the 
period  indicated  in  the  text. 


338  Mourning. 


Garments.  Food. 

IO 

3 

10 

3 
3 


Eldest  son's  eldest  son 30 

Other    grandchildren 10 

Adopted  son 30 

Nephews  and  nieces        7 

First  cousins     .  .       . .      7 

Infants  under  three  months  are  not  mourned  for,  and  the  period 
of  mourning  for  children  is  greatly  reduced  if  they  are  under 
seven  years  of  age. 

Whenever  a  death  occurs  in  the  family  of  an  official,  he  must 
at  once  report  it  to  the  Department  to  which  he  is  attached.  The 
theory  is  that  he  should  remain  at  home  during  the  whole  of 
the  proper  period  of  mourning.  But  as  this  would  cause  incon- 
venience in  practice,  he  is  always  absolved  from  the  operation 
of  the  rule,  and  ordered  to  "  attend  office  though  in  mourning." 
When  any  member  of  the  Imperial  family  dies,  a  notification  is 
issued  prohibiting  all  sound  of  music  throughout  the  land  for  the 
space  of  three  days,  and  even  for  a  longer  period  if  the  deceased 
personage  stood  very  near  the  throne. 

Periodical  visits  to  the  grave  of  the  deceased — haka-mairi,  as 
they  are  termed — form  an  essential  part  of  the  Japanese  system 
of  mourning.  The  days  prescribed  by  custom  for  these  visits 
are  the  seventh  day  after  decease,  the  fourteenth,  twenty-first, 
thirty-fifth,  forty-ninth,  and  hundredth ;  then  the  first  anniver- 
sary, the  third  anniversary,  the  seventh,  thirteenth,  seventeenth, 
twenty-third,  twenty-seventh,  thirty-third,  thirty-seventh,  fiftieth, 
and  hundredth.  On  the  more  important  of  these  occasions 
Buddhist  services  are  performed,  for  instance,  on  the  first  and 
third  anniversaries.  By  some,  especially  among  the  poorer  classes, 
the  whole  of  this  extensive  programme  proves  to  be  impossible 
of  fulfilment,  and  even  in  the  upper  class  not  a  few  are  now 
found  who  sensibly  imitate  Europe  by  moderating  the  outward 
symbols  of  grief;  but  the  seventh  and  thirty-fifth  days  and  the 
first  and  third  anniversaries  are  never  neglected.  The  observance 
of  the  anniversaries  of  several  members  of  a  family  is  sometimes 
lumped  together  when  the  dates  nearly  coincide,  provided  always 


Music.  339 

that  none  of  the  honoured  dead  be  kept  waiting  beyond  his  due 
time.  All  these  numbers  are  calculated  according  to  the  old 
Japanese  "  inclusive "  system  or  reckoning,  so  that  the  so-called 
third  anniversary  is  really  the  second,  etc.  (see  p.  12).  White  is 
the  colour  of  mourning, — not  black  as  in  Western  lands. 

Moxa.  "Moxa"  is  one  of  the  few  Japanese  words  that  have 
found  their  way  into  the  English  language.  It  is  properly  mogusa, 
a  contraction  of  moe-kusa,  that  is  "the  burning  herb," — a  name 
given,  on  account  of  its  use,  to  the  plant  which  we  call  "  mugwort." 
It  is  employed  as  a  cautery,  fragments  of  it  being  rolled  into 
a    tiny    cone,    and   then  applied  to  the  body  and  set  fire  to. 

In  the  old  Chinese  and  Japanese  system  of  medicine,  burning 
with  the  moxa  was  considered  a  panacea  for  almost  every  human 
ill.  It  was  prescribed  for  fainting  fits,  nose-bleeding,  rheuma- 
tism, and  a  hundred  other  ailments.  A  woman  unable  to  bear 
the  pangs  of  child-birth  was  to  be  relieved  by  having  three  places 
burnt  with  it  on  the  little  toe  of  her  right  foot.  In  addition  to 
this,  the  moxa  was  used  as  a  punishment  for  children,  many 
being  burnt — generally  on  the  back— when  more  than  usually 
naughty.  This  practice,  which  is  not  yet  obsolete,  accounts  for 
some  at  least  of  the  cicatrices  on  the  naked  backs  and  legs  of 
jinrikisha-men  and  other  coolies.  There  is  a  well-known  story 
of  a  child,  who,  having  committed  arson,  and  rendered  himself 
thereby  liable,  under  the  former  severe  law  of  the  realm,  to  be 
burnt  alive,  was  dragged  out  with  impressive  pomp  to  the  place 
of  execution,  but  let  off  at  the  last  moment  with  an  unusually 
severe  application  of  the  moxa. 

Book  recommended.  Whitney's  Notes  on  the  History  of  Medical  Progress  in 
Japan,  published  in  Vol.  XII.  Part  IV.  of  the  "  Asiatic  Transactions,"  especially 
p.  289  et  set/.,  from  which  some  of  our  statements  have  been  taken. 

Music.  Music,  if  that  beautiful  word  must  be  allowed  to  fall 
so  low  as  to  denote  the  strummings  and  squealings  of  Orientals, 
is  supposed  to  have  existed  in  Japan  ever  since  mythological  times. 
But  Japanese  music  as  at  present  known — its  lutes,  flutes,  drums, 


34o  Music. 

and  fiddles  of  various  sorts — came  over  from  China,  like  most 
other  things  good  and  bad,  in  the  train  of  Buddhism.  The  koto, 
a  sort  of  lyre  which  is  the  most  highly  esteemed  of  modern 
instruments,  was  gradually  evolved  from  earlier  Chinese  models, 
and  perfected  in  the  first  half  of  the  seventeenth  century  by 
Yatsuhashi,  who  has  been  styled  the  father  of  modern  Japanese 
music.  The  samisen*  or  "  three  strings,"  now  the  favourite  instru- 
ment of  the  singing-girls  and  of  the  lower  classes  generally,  seems 
to  have  been  introduced  from  Manila  as  recently  as  the  year  1700. 
The  perfection  of  Japanese  classical  music  may  be  heard  at 
Tokyo  from  the  Band  of  Court  Musicians  attached  to  the  Bureau 
of  Rites.  Having  said  that  it  may  be  heard,  we  hasten  to  add 
that  it  cannot  be  heard  often  by  ordinary  mortals.  The  easiest 
way  to  get  a  hearing  of  it  is  to  attend  one  of  the  concerts  given 
by  the  Musical  Society  of  Japan  (an  association  founded  in  1886 
for  the  cultivation  alike  of  Japanese  and  European  music),  at 
which  the  Court  Musicians  occasionally  perform.  A  more  curious 
ceremony  still  is  the  performance  by  these  same  musicians,  at 
certain  Shinto  festivals,  of  a  silent  concert.  Both  stringed  and 
wind  instruments  are  used  in  this  concert ;  but  it  is  held  that  the 
sanctity  of  the  occasion  would  be  profaned,  were  any  sound  to  fall 
on  unworthy  ears.  Therefore,  though  all  the  motions  of  playing 
are  gone  through,  no  strains  are  actually  emitted  !  This  is  but 
one  among  many  instances  of  the  strange  vagaries  of  the  Japanese 
musical  art,  and  of  the  extreme  esoteric  mystery  in  which  the 
families  hereditarily  entrusted  with  the  handing  down  of  that  art 
enshroud  their  knowledge,  f 

*  More  often  pronounced  shamtsen  ;  but  samisen  is  considered  correct. 

t  The  existence  of  these  "  silent  concerts  "  was  set  in  doubt  by  a  critic  of  the  first 
edition  of  this  work.  Never  having  heard,  or  rather  seen,  any  ourselves,  we  describe 
them  on  the  authority  of  Mr.  Isawa,  who,  in  a  private  communication  on  the  subject, 
reminds  us  that  such  esoteric  mysteries  would  not  willingly  be  alluded  to  by  their  old- 
fashioned  possessors,  least  of  all  in  reply  to  the  scientific  enquiries  if  a  foreigner,  and 
that  the  very  explanations  given — supposing  any  to  be  given — would  probably  be  couched 
in  ambiguous  language.  We  may  add  that  some  mystery  is  made  about  certain  tunes 
for  such  common  instruments  as  the  koto  and  samisen,  only  those  persons  being  allowed 
to  play  them  who  have  studied  and  paid  money  to  receive  diplomas. 


Music. 


34i 


The  chanting  of  the  Buddhist  liturgy,  also,  at  certain  temple 
services  is  considered  classical.  This  chanting  has  been  held  by 
some  to  resemble  the  Ambrosian  and  early  Gregorian  tones ;  but 
local  colouring  is  sufficiently  provided  for,  inasmuch  as  each  per- 
former utters  the  strain  in  the  key  that  best  suits  the  pitch  of  his 
own  voice.  For  this  classical  music  there  exists  a  notation, — a 
notation  which  is  extremely  complicated.  There  is  none  for  the 
more  popular  instruments, — for  the  samisen  and  kokyu, — while  that 
which  exists  for  the  koto  is  kept  as  an  esoteric  secret  by  the  heads 
of  the  profession,  the  teachers  of  the  teachers.  An  attempt  to 
popularise  it  was  made  about  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century  ; 
but  the  teachers,  deeming  their  authority  threatened,  success- 
fully opposed  the  innovation,  much  as  codification  is  opposed  by 
English  lawyers. 

It  may  seem  odd  that  so  fundamental  a  question  as  the  nature 
of  the  Japanese  scale  should  still  be  a  matter  of  debate.  Yet  so 
it  is.  According  to  Dr.  Miiller,  one  of  the  earliest  and  most 
interesting  writers  on  the  subject,  this  scale  consists,  properly 
speaking,  of  five  notes  of  the  harmonic  minor  scale,  the  fourth 
and  seventh  being  omitted,  because,  as  there  are  five  recognised 
colours,  five  planets,  five  elements,  five  viscera,  and  so  on,  there 
must  also  be  five  notes  in  music, — a  method  of  reasoning  which 
is  only  too  familiar  to  students  of  Chinese  and  Japanese  literature 
and  which  was  not  unknown  to  our  own  ancestors.  Mr.  Piggott 
believes  the  normal  Japanese  scale  to  agree  with  that  of  modern 
Europe,  though  he  allows  the  prevalently  pentatonic  character  of 
most  of  the  tunes  actually  composed.  But  Drs.  Knott  and 
DuBois  by  no  means  agree  with  him,  and  Dr.  Divers  twits  Mr. 
Piggott  with  setting  aside  the  peculiarities  that  distinguish  the 
Japanese  from  the  European  system,  instead  of  accounting  for  them. 
The  late  Mr.  Ellis's  opinion  on  the  subject  will  be  found  in  his 
paper  mentioned  below.  But  Mr.  Isawa,  the  greatest  Japanese 
authority  on  music,  says,  in  a  private  communication  addressed  to 
us,  that  Mr.  Ellis  was  misled  on  some  important  points  by  his 
having  given  too  much  weight  to  the  performances  of  an  ignorant 


342  Music. 

woman  at  the  "  Japanese  Village "  in  London.  As  well,  says 
Mr.  Isawa,  take  a  jinrikisha-man  for  referee  on  questions  of 
grammar  and  diction,  as  such  a  woman  for  an  authority  on  a 
matter  so  delicate  as  musical  intervals.  According  to  Mr.  Isawa, 
the  second,  fourth,  and  sixth  in  the  classical  music  of  Japan  are 
identical  with  the  same  intervals  of  the  modern  European  scale, 
but  the  third  (major  third)  is  sharper,  and  the  seventh  natter. 
The  popular  or  samiscn  scale  is  different.  Like  the  scale  of 
mediaeval  Europe — we  still  quote  Mr.  Isawa — it  has  for  its  chief 
peculiarity  a  semitone  above  the  tonic,  which  is  one  among 
various  reasons  for  believing  the  samisen,  together  with  its  scale,  to 
have  found  its  way  here  from  the  Spaniards  at  Manila,  and  not 
from  Luchu  according  to  the  current  Japanese  opinion.  Mr.  R. 
Dittrich,  the  latest  investigator,  diverges  from  all  his  predecessors, 
and  establishes  three  separate  scales,  which  are  properly  pentatonic, 
but  sometimes  made  heptatonic  through  the  addition  of  two 
auxiliary  notes.  These  generally  omitted  notes  are  to  our  ears  the 
most  important  of  all,  namely  the  third  and  the  sixth. 

Be  the  scale  what  it  may,  the  effect  of  Japanese  music  is,  not 
to  soothe,  but  to  exasperate  beyond  all  endurance  the  European 
breast.  Miss  Bacon,  in  her  charming  book  entitled  Japanese 
Girls  and  Women,  demurely  remarks  :  "  It  seems  to  me  quite 
fortunate  that  the  musical  art  is  not  more  generally  practised." 
That  is  what  every  one  thinks,  though  most  Europeans  of  the 
sterner  sex  would  use  considerably  stronger  expressions  to  relieve 
their  feelings  on  the  matter.  Japanese  music  employs  only 
common  time.  Harmony  it  has  none.  It  knows  nothing  of  our 
distinction  of  modes,  and  therefore,  as  a  writer  on  the  subject 
has  pointed  out,  it  lacks  alike  the  vigour  and  majesty  of  the  major 
mode,  the  plaintive  tenderness  of  the  minor,  and  the  marvellous 
effects  of  light  and  shade  which  arise  from  the  alternations  of  the 
two.  Perhaps  this  is  the  reason  why  the  Japanese  themselves  are 
so  indifferent  to  the  subject.  One  never  hears  a  party  of  Japa- 
nese talking  seriously  about  music ;  musical  questions  are  never 
discussed   in  the  newspapers ;   no  one  goes  to  a  temple  service 


Music.  343 

"  Not  for  the  doctrine,  but  the  music  there  ;  " 
a  Japanese  Bayreuth  is  unthinkable.  Men  on  the  spree  send  for 
singing-girls  chiefly  in  order  to  ogle  and  chaff  them,  and  to  help 
along  the  entertainment  by  a  little  noise.  To  ask  the  name  of 
the  composer  of  any  tune  the  girls  are  singing,  is  a  thing  that 
would  never  enter  their  heads.  Still,  of  course  pathology  is  as 
legitimate  a  study  as  physiology.  Those,  therefore,  who  wish  to 
investigate  more  minutely  the  ways  and  means  whereby  injury  is 
inflicted  on  sensitive  ears  should  consult  the  authorities  enumer- 
ated below,  especially  Mr.  Piggott's  book,  where  will  be  found 
capital  illustrations  of  Japanese  musical  instruments,  together 
with  specimens  of  tunes  transcribed  into  the  European  notation, 
so  far — for  that  is  one  of  the  points  in  dispute — as  such  tran- 
scription is  possible. 

Dislikes  are  apt  to  be  mutual.  Of  all  the  elements  of  Euro- 
peanisation,  European  music  is  the  one  for  which  the  Japanese 
have  been  slowest  to  evince  any  taste.  Bands  do  now,  it  is  true, 
sometimes  parade  the  streets, — alas  !  In  fact,  an  English  band- 
master was  engaged  by  one  of  the  departments  of  the  government 
as  far  back  as  the  early  seventies,  and  his  successor,  a  German, 
harmonised  the  national  anthem  which  was  considered  a  necessary 
item  of  Japan's  new  outfit ; — for,  as  each  modern  nation  of  Europe 
possesses  a  national  anthem,  it  followed  logically  that  Japan 
could  not  remain  without  one.  Fifteen  or  twenty  years  later,  a 
Miss  Koda  was  sent  to  Germany  to  study  the  violin,  and  returned 
as  an  admirable  executant.  Her  younger  sister  following  her 
example,  was  placed  under  Joachim's  personal  care.*  Other 
efforts  were  made,  an  academy  of  music  was  founded  at  Tokyo, 
and  towards  the  close  of  the  nineteenth  century  passed  under 
the  direction  of  Prof.  A.  Junker,  who,  in  the  brief  space  of  five  or 
six  years,  has  done  marvels,  evolving  a  pleasing  chorus  of  some 


*  This  Koda  family  is  a  distinguished  one,  one  brother  being  the  eminent  novelist 
who  writes  under  the  pseudonym  Rohan,  while  the  other,  Lieut.  Gunji,  of  the 
Imperial  Japanese  Navy,  has  made  a  name  for  himself  by  his  adventurous  life  fn  the 
Kurile  Islands. 


344  Names. 

eighty  singers  out  of  a  chaos  of  disagreeable,  nasal  voices, 
producing  too  a  respectable  orchestra  of  forty  executants  and  two 
hundred  and  fifty  pupils  who  possess  a  considerable  amount 
of  theoretical  knowledge.  First  some  of  the  Imperial  Princesses, 
now  also  the  Empress  herself  and  the  Crown  Princess  have 
taken  the  matter  up,  and  the  pupils  of  the  academy,  aided  by 
foreign  amateurs,  occasionally  give  concerts  at  which  over  a 
thousand  persons  attend.  It  is  to  be  presumed  that  most  do  so 
out  of  curiosity,  and  some  bring  infants  who  accompany  the 
performance  with  their  squalls.  Still  a  beginning  has  been  made, 
and  we  know  that  sometimes  a  little  leaven  leaveneth  the  whole 
lump.  May  this  happen  here  before  another  century  elapses,  and 
then  may  all  the  samisens,  kotos,  and  other  native  instruments  of 
music  be  turned  into  firewood  to  warm  the  poor,  when — if  at  no 
previous  period  of  their  existence — they  will  subserve  a  purpose 
indisputably  useful ! 

Books  recommended.  The  Music  and  Musical  Instruments  of  Japan,  by  F.  T. 
Piggott  (an  expansion,  beautifully  illustrated,  of  his  paper  in  the  "Asiatic  Transactions" 
mentioned  below). — On  the  Musical  Scales  of  Various  Nations,  by  A.  J.  Ellis,  F.  R.  S.# 
printed  in  the  "Journal  of  the  Society  of  Arts"  for  the  27th  March.  1885. — Some 
Japanese  Musical  Intervals,  by  Rev.  Dr.  Veeder,  in  Vol.  VII.  Part  II.  of  the  "  Asiatic 
Transactions." — Various  papers  by  F.  T.  Piggott,  Dr.  F.  DuBois,  and  Dr.  C.  G.  Knott, 
in  Vol.  XIX.  Part  II.  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions." — Einige  Notizen  iiber  die  Japa- 
nische  Rlusik,  by  Dr.  Miiller,  in  Vol.  I.  of  the  "German  Asiatic  Transactions,"  and 
R.  Dittrich's  excellent  paper  in  Part  58  of  the  same. — For  specimens  of  Japanese  music 
transcribed  into  the  European  musical  notation,  and  with  the  words  of  the  songs  in 
Roman  letters,  see  a  small  book  published  in  1888  by  the  Tokyo  Academy  of  Music, 
and  entitled  Collection  of  Japanese  Koto  Music.  The  most  delicate-minded  need  not 
fear  having  their  morals  tainted  by  strumming  through  this  little  volume,  as  the  editors 
make  a  point  of  telling  us  in  their  preface  that  in  this  edition  of  the  old  Koto  music, 
"  for  those  words  and  tunes  occurring  therein,  which  are  liable  to  offend  the  public 
feelings  on  account  of  their  vulgarity  and  meanness,  pure  and  elegant  ones  have  been 
substituted,  thus  preventing  their  baneful  effects  upon  the  social  character."  At  the 
same  time,  the  few  entirely  new  compositions  of  their  own,  which  the  compilers  have 
ventured  to  add,  have  all  "been  prepared  with  a  care  not  to  injure  that  virtue  which 
is  inherent  in  our  old  Koto  music."  Historical  accuracy  is  thus  as  perfectly  safe- 
guarded as  taste  and  morals. 

Mythology.     See  History. 

Names.     The  Japanese  have  more  than  one  kind  of  surname, 
more   than    one  kind   of  Christian  (or  should  we   say    heathen  ?) 


Names.  345 

name,  besides  nicknames,  pseudonyms,  and  even  posthumous 
names.  The  subject  is  a  labyrinth.  We  merely  sketch  out  the 
following  as  a  clue  to  guide  the  student  in  threading  his  way 
through  it.     He  will  find,  then,  that  there  are  : — 

1.  The  kabane  or  set,  a  very  ancient  and  aristocratic  sort  of 
family  name,  but  now  so  widely  diffused  as  to  include  several 
surnames  in  the  narrower  sense  of  the  word.  The  grand  old 
names  of  Minamolo,  Fujiwara,  Tachibana,  are  kabane. 

2.  The  uji  or  mydji,  our  surname,  and  dating  like  it  only  from 
mediaeval  times.  Most  names  of  this  class  were  originally  nothing 
more  than  the  names  of  the  localities  in  which  the  families 
bearing  them  resided,  as  Yama-moto,  "  foot  of  the  mountain  ;  " 
Ta-naka,  "  among  the  rice-fields ; "  Maisu-mura,  "  pine-tree 
village."  Down  to  about  1870,  surnames  were  borne  only  by 
persons  of  gentle  birth,  common  folks  being  allowed  but  No.  3, 
much  as  in  Europe  during  the  middle  ages. 

3.  The  zokumyo  or  Isusho,  literally,  "common  name."  It 
corresponds  pretty  closely  to  our  Christian  name.  Very  often 
such  names  end  in  lard  for  an  eldest  son,  in  jiro  for  a  second, 
in  sabard  for  a  third,  and  so  on  down  to  juro  for  a  tenth  son, 
as  Genlarb,  Tsunajiro,  etc.  ;  or  else  these  distinctive  terminations 
are  used  alone  without  any  prefix.  They  mean  respectively 
"big  male,"  "second  male,"  "third  male,"  and  so  on.  Other 
zokumyo,  end  in  emon,  suke,  nojo,  bei, — words  fomerly  serving  to 
designate  certain  official  posts,  but  now  quite  obsolete  in  their 
original  acceptation. 

4.  The  nanori  or  jiisumyo,  that  is,  "true  name,"  also  corres- 
ponding to  our  Christian  name.  Examples  of  it  are  Masashige, 
Yoshisada,  Tamoisu,  Takashi.  Until  recently,  the  jiisumyo  had  a 
certain  importance  attached  to  it  and  a  mystery  enshrouding  it. 
It  was  used  only  on  solemn  occasions,  especially  in  combination 
with  the  kabane,  as  Fujiwara  no  Yorilsugu  (>/tf  =  "of").  Since 
the  revolution  of  1868,  there  has  been  a  tendency  to  let  No.  1 
retreat  into  the  background,  to  make  No.  2  equivalent  to  the 
European  surname,  and   to  assimilate  Nos.     3  and  4,  both  being 


346  Names. 

employed  indiscriminately  as  equivalents  of  the  European  Christian 
name.     If  a  man  keeps  No.   3,  he  drops  No.  4,  and  vice  versa. 

5.  The  ybmyo,  or  "infant  name."  Formerly  all  boys  had  a 
temporary  name  of  this  sort,  which  was  only  dropped,  and  the 
jitswnyb  assumed,  at  the  age  of  fifteen.  Thus  the  child  might  have 
been  Taro  or  Kikunosuke,  while  the  young  man  became  Hajime  or 
Tamotsu.  The  classes  of  names  next  to  be  mentioned,  though  all 
existing  in  full  force,  are  less  important  than  the  preceding  classes. 

6.  The  azana,  translated  "nickname,"  for  want  of  a  better 
equivalent.  Such  are  Mokei,  Bunrin,  Solan,  Shisei.  Chinese 
scholars  specially  affect  these,  which  are  not  vulgar,  like  our 
nicknames,  but  on  the  contrary,  highly  elegant. 

7.  The  go*  "  Pseudonym  "  is  the  nearest  English  equivalent, 
but  almost  every  Japanese  of  a  literary  or  artistic  bent  has  one. 
Indeed  he  may  have  several.  Some  of  the  Japanese  names  most 
familiar  to  foreign  ears  are  merely  such  pseudonyms  assumed 
and  dropped  at  will,  for  instance,  Hokusai  (who  had  half-a-dozen 
others),  Okyo,  and  Bakin.  Authors  and  painters  are  in  the  habit  of 
giving  fanciful  names  to  their  residences,  and  then  they  themselves 
are  called  after  their  residences,  as  Bashd-an  ("  banana  hermitage"), 
Suzunoya-no-Aruji  ("  master  of  the  house  with  a  bell ").  Such 
names  often  end  in  dojin.  sanjin,  koji,  okina,  that  is,  "hermit," 
"mountaineer,"  "retired  scholar,"  "aged  man." 

8.  The  haimyb  and  gago.  These  are  but  varieties  of  the  go, 
adopted  by  comic  poets  and  by  painters. 

9.  The  geimyb,  "  artistic  name,"  adopted  by  singing  and  danc- 
ing-girls, actors,  story-tellers,  and  other  professional  entertainers 
of  the  public.  Thus,  Ichikawa  Danjuro  was  not  the  real  name,  but 
only  the  hereditary  "artistic  name,"  of  the  most  celebrated  of 
modern  Japanese  actors.  To  his  friends  in  private  life,  he  was 
Mr.    Horikoshi  Shu  (Horikoshi  being  the  mybji,  No.   2  ;  Shu  the 

jilsumyb,  No.  4). 

10.  The  ohnri-na,  or  posthumous  honorific  appellation  of  exalted 
personages.  These  are  the  names  by  which  all  the  Mikados  are 
known  to  history, — names  which  they  never  bore  during  their 
lifetime.     Jimmu  Tennb  and  Jingo  Kbgb  are  examples. 


Name* 


34  7 


ii.  The  hbmyb  or  kaimyb,  a  posthumous  appellation  chosen  by 
the  Buddhist  priests  for  each  believer  immediately  after  death, 
and  inscribed  on  the  funeral  tablet.  Such  names  end  in  in,  koji, 
shinji,  shinny o,  dbji,  etc.,  according  to  the  age,  sex,  rank,  and 
sect  of  the  deceased. 

It  is  characteristic  of  Japanese  ways  that  the  native  friend  who 
assisted  in  the  above  classification  never  thought  of  mentioning 
women's  names  (yobi-na),  which  we  will  call  No.  12.  These 
are  generally  taken  from  some  flower  or  other  natural  object,  or 
else  from  some  virtue  or  from  something  associated  with  good 
luck,  'and  are  preceded  by  the  word  O,  "honourable."  Thus 
we  find  O  Kiku,  "Chrysanthemum;"  0  Take,  "Bamboo;" 
O  Gin,  "Silver  ;  "  O  Haru,  "Spring-time,"  O  Kb,  "  Filial  Piety," 
O  J/i/su,  "Abundance,"  etc.,  etc.  But  if  the  name  has  more 
than  two  syllables,  the  honorific  prefix  is  omitted,  as  Kaoru, 
"  Fragrant."  Of  late  years  it  has  become  fashionable  among  the 
upper  classes  to  drop  the  prefix  O,  "honourable,"  and  to  use 
the  suffix  ko,  literally  "child,"  instead,  thus  Take-ko,  Mitsu-ko. 

It  was  formerly  the  custom  for  a  man  to  alter  his  name  at 
any  crisis  of  his  career.  Even  now,  adoption  and  various  other 
causes,  frequently  entail  such  changes.  The  card  is  brought  in 
to  you  of  a  Mr.  Abo,  of  whom  you  have  never  heard  : — the  man 
himself  walks  into  the  room,  when  lo  and  behold  !  it  is  your  old 
friend  Hayashi.  A  teacher  in  mid-term  suddenly  loses  track  of 
a  student  named  Suzuki,  and  has  to  pick  it  up  as  best  he  may 
in  an  apparent  new-comer  called  Mitsuhashi.  Not  human  beings 
only,  but  places  exhibit  this  fickleness.  Hundreds  of  place-names 
have  been  altered  during  the  present  reign,  to  the  dire  confusion 
of  geographical  and  historical  studies.  The  change  of  Yedo  to 
Tokyd  is  only  the  best-known  of  these.  The  idea,  which  is  an 
old  Chinese  one,  is  to  emphasise  by  the  adoption  of  a  new  name 
some  new  departure  in  the  fortunes  of  a  city,  village,  mountain, 
school,  etc.  It  is  as  if  we  should  have  changed  the  name  of 
London  and  other  places  at  the  Reformation,  or  of  Eton  when 
the  new   Latin  grammar  was  introduced.      Bureaucratic  readjust- 


348  Navy. 

ments  have  acted  extensively  in  the  same  direction,  hamlets,  for 
instance,  being  grouped  together  and  receiving  a  general  name, 
which  may  be  either  totally  new  or  else  that  of  one  or  other 
member  of  the  group.  In  the  former  case,  one  is  entirely  at  sea ;  in 
the  latter,  one  is  confused  between  the  larger  and  the  smaller  entity. 

Another  peculiarity  is  what  may  be  termed  the  transmission 
of  names.  A  teacher,  for  instance,  hands  on  his  own  pseudonym 
to  a  favourite  pupil,  in  order  to  help  to  start  him  in  popular 
favour.  In  this  manner  a  bit  of  faience  may  be  signed  "  Kenzan," 
and  yet  not  be  by  the  original  potter  Kenzan  at  all.  In  many 
cases  only  a  part  of  the  name  is  given  or  adopted.  The  Shoguns 
of  the  Tokugawa  dynasty  offer  a  good  example  of  this  remarkable 
custom.  The  name  of  the  founder  of  the  house  being  leyasu,  his 
successors  styled  themselves  Iemitsu,  Iclsuna,  Ienobu,  and  so  on. 

Now  were  we,  or  were  we  not,  right  in  the  statement  with 
which  we  set  out,  that  Japanese  names  are  a  labyrinth  ? 

Books  recommended.  For  women's  names,  see  one  of  the  articles  included  in 
Lafcadio  Hearn's  volume  entitled  Shadozvings ;  also  R.  Lange's  Vber  ja/xwische 
Frausttnamen,  published  in  Jahrgang  IV,  Abtheilung  I  of  the  Mitthcilungen  des 
S/:minars  fiir  Oricntalische  Sj>rac'ien  zu  Berlin. 

Naturalisation.     See  third  paragraph  of  page  18. 

Navy.  The  Japanese  have  from  early  days  been  a  seafaring 
race  : — they  proved  this  by  their  repeated  piratical  attacks  on  the 
seaboard  of  Korea  and  China,  which  became  so  disastrous  that 
the  timid  Chinese  government  for  a  time  let  a  belt  of  land  along 
the  coast  lie  waste  as  a  protection.  But  of  a  navy  properly  so 
called  during  the  Middle  Ao-es,  little  is  known.  Both  the  central 
government  and  the  Daimyos  possessed  war-ships  which  were 
worked,  like  the  galleys  of  the  Mediterranean,  partly  with  sails 
and  partly  with  oars  ;  and  although  the  outward  form  differed 
from  that  of  the  galley,  the  internal  arrangements  were  the  same. 
These  ships  played  an  important  part  in  the  domestic  feuds  of 
the  times.  The  national  annals  tell  of  their  presence  at  the 
famous  battle  of  Dan-no-ura  in  A.D.  1185  between  the  partisans 
of  the  great  houses  of  Taira  and   Minamoto,    and    again  in  the 


Navy.  349 

still  more  famous  expedition  to  Korea  under  Hideyoshi  at  the 
end  of  the  sixteenth  century.  This  ancient  navy,  however,  dis- 
appeared without  leaving  any  traditions. 

The  foundation  of  the  modern  Japanese  navy  dates  from  the 
last  days  of  the  Shogunate,  when  a  lew  young  men  were  sent 
to  Holland  for  instruction  in  seamanship,  and  the  services  of  a 
small  party  of  British  naval  officers  and  men,  under  the  leader- 
ship of  Commander  Tracey,  R.  N.,  were  obtained  through  the 
instrumentality  of  Sir  Harry  Parkes,  then  British  minister  at  Yedo. 
This  was  in  September,  1867.  Five  months  later,  the  revolution 
which  drove  the  Shogun  from  his  throne  broke  out,  and  the  Naval 
Mission,  as  it  was  termed,  was  withdrawn,  first  to  Yokohama, 
then  home  to  England.  During  the  troublous  times  that  ensued, 
some  of  the  greater  Daimyos  devoted  all  their  energies  to  military 
matters.  One  of  them,  the  Prince  of  Hizen,  eager  to  possess  a 
navy  of  his  own,  engaged  Lieutenant  Hawes,  of  the  Royal  Marines, 
as  gunnery  instructor  on  board  a  vessed  named  the  Ryiijo  Kan ; 
and  this  officer,  who  had  an  unusual  talent  for  organisation,  and 
who  occupied  himself,  both  on  board  the  Ryiijo  Kan  and  later 
on  in  other  positions,  with  many  matters  besides  gunnery  and 
the  training  of  marines,  may  be  considered  the  real  father  of  the 
Japanese  navy.  In  the  year  1873,  when  all  storms  were  over 
and  the  Mikado  had  long  been  restored  to  absolute  power,  the 
British  government  lent  the  services  of  a  second  Naval  Mission, 
headed  by  Commander  Douglas,  R.  N.,  and  consisting  of  thirty 
officers  and  men.  A  Naval  College  was  built  in  Tokyo,  and 
instruction  in  all  the  necessary  branches  was  seriously  commenced, 
young  officers  and  seamen  being  drafted  off  from  time  to  time 
to  the  various  ships,  so  as  to  constitute,  as  it  were,  a  leaven  by 
which  a  practical  knowledge  of  naval  matters  should  be  spread. 
The  drill  was  formed  on  the  model  of  the  English  Naval  Gunnery 
School,  and  the  excellence  of  the  system  can  be  traced  down  to 
the  present  day.  The  second  Naval  Mission  left  Japan  after  six 
years'  service.  The  Naval  College  was  later  on  removed  to 
Etajima  in  the  Inland  Sea,  an   Academy   for   senior  officers  was 


35°  Navy. 

established  at  Tokyo,  and  gunnery  and  torpedo  schools  were 
also  organised.  In  addition  to  ordinary  training-ships,  a  standing 
squadron  is  kept  afloat,  which  goes  out  every  year  for  long 
cruises  and  squadron  exercises.  A  suitable  law  of  conscription, 
based  largely  on  the  volunteer  system,  is  in  force. 

As  regards  dockyards,  there  are  four  "  first-class  naval  stations, " 
each  of  which  is  provided  with  ship-building  plant.  The  oldest 
is  that  at  Yokosuka  near  Yokohama,  which  was  built  by  French 
naval  architects  some  forty  years  ago,  and  has  since  been  greatly 
extended ;  but  the  most  important  is  at  Kure  on  the  Inland  Sea, 
which,  in  addition  to  a  well-equipped  dockyard  and  a  magnificent 
harbour,  possesses  a  fine  arsenal  for  the  manufacture  of  large- 
calibre  modern  breach-loading  steel  guns,  and  also  of  large-calibre 
steel  shell.  •  Sasebo  in  Kyushu  ranks  as  the  third  naval  station, 
with  three  dry  docks.  The  fourth  is  Maizuru  on  the  Sea  of  Japan, 
completed  in  190 1.  A  fifth  is  to  be  established  at  Muroran  in  Yezo. 
Most  of  the  ships  and  guns  are,  however,  still  imported  from  abroad. 

When  the  war  with  China  broke  out  in  1894,  the  navy  was 
already  well-prepared  to  take  its  share  in  the  fray,  because, 
though  numerically  weaker  than  the  Chinese  fleet,  it  was  superior 
in  seamanship  and  in  discipline.  The  advance,  alike  in  morale 
and  in  materiel,  was  so  constant,  so  solid,  that,  when  preparing 
the  last  edition  of  this  book  in  1901,  we  ventured  to  express 
ourselves  as  follows  : — 

"  We  are  no  sailor,  and  the  opinion  of  an  amateur  on  naval 
"  matters  is  notoriously  worthless.  Nevertheless,  we  cannot  refrain 
"  from  repeating  in  other  words  what  we  have  already  said  of  the 
"Japanese  army.  We  cannot  help  expressing  our  admiration  of 
"  and  belief  in  the  Japanese  navy  also,  and  of  Japan  altogether 
"as  a  military  power.  Though  it  may  not  be  for  us  to  judge  of 
"the  technical  excellencies  of  ships  and  guns  and  docks,  it  is 
"  perhaps  given  to  an  old  resident  who  has  travelled  widely,  and 
"  read  a  good  deal,  and  mixed  much  with  all  classes,  to  appreciate 
"  the  existence  of  those  qualities  of  intellect  and  morale  which  go 
"  to  make  up  a  good  fighting  man  whether  on  land  or  sea.     To 


Newspapers.  35 1 

"our  thinking,  any  foreign  power  that  should  venture  to    attack 
"Japan  in  her  own  waters,  would  be  strangely  ill-advised.'' 

Need  we  say  how  brilliantly  this  prophecy  has  been  realised 
in  the  great  war  with  Russia  now  (1904)  being  fought  out 
before  the  eyes  of  an  astonished  world  ?  In  less  than  two  months 
from  its  inception,  the  Japanese  established  their  superiority  in  the 
handling  of  modern  vessels,  in  gunnery,  in  tactics,  in  everything 
that  makes  for  efficiency.  Now,  after  six  months,  little  remains  of 
their  opponents'  fleet  but  disabled  hulks,  while  the  exploits  of 
Admiral  Togo,  and  his  brave  subordinates  will  live  on  in  the 
memory  of  future  generations.* 

Newspapers.  The  founder  of  Japanese  journalism  was  an 
Englishman,  Mr.  John  Black,  one  of  the  earliest  foreign  residents 
of  Yokohama.  Before  his  time  there  no  doubt  existed  street- 
criers  (yomi-uri),  who  hawked  small  sheets  roughly  struck  off 
from  wooden  blocks  whenever  some  horrid  murder  or  other 
interesting  event  took  place.  The  Kwaigai  Shimbun  of  1864 — 5, 
published  by  "Joseph  Heco,"|  was  a  step  in  advance.  Then, 
in  1 87 1,  appeared  a  small  quasi-journalistic  venture,  entitled  the 
Shimbun  Zasski,  believed  to  be  inspired  by  Kido,  a  then  promi- 
nent politician.  But  Mr.  Black's  Ntsshin  Shi?ijishi,  started  in 
1872,  was  the  first  newspaper  worthy  of  the  name, — the  first  to 
give  leading  articles  and  to  comment  seriously  on  political  affairs. 
The  seed  once  sown,  Japanese  journalism  grew  apace.  There  are 
now  781  newspapers  and  magazines  published  in  the  empire,  of 
which  209  in  Tokyo  alone.  The  most  important  newspapers 
appearing  in  the  capital  are  the  Kzvampb,  or  "  Official  Gazette ;" 
the    Xokwiwi,    semi-official ;    the   Nihon,    conservative   and   anti- 

*  We  refrain  from  all  naval  statistics,  which  the  far-reaching  results  of  the  war 
would  render  useless  in  a  few  weeks.  Readers  are  referred  to  the  blue-books  and  other 
official  reports  which  are  sure  to  be  issued  from  time  to  time. 

t  A  native  of  the  province  of  Harima,  on  the  Inland  Sea,  who  was  cast  away  in  a 
junk  in  the  year  1850,  rescued,  and  carried  to  America,  where  he  lived  for  some 
years,  returning  as  interpreter  when  Japan  was  opened.  He  died  in  1897.  The  story 
of  his  checkered  career  is  told  in   The  Narrative  of  a  Japanese. 


3  5  2  Newspapers. 

foreign ;  the  Yomi-uri  and  the  Mainichi,  progressionist ;  the  Jiji 
Shimpb,  independent ;  the  Nichi  Nichi,  generally  regarded  as  an 
organ  of  Baron  I  to ;  the  Chugivai  Shbgyb  Shimpo,  commercial. 
The  Asahi,  the  Miyako,  the  Child,  and  the  Hbchi  enjoy  great 
popularity,  as  does  also  the  Yorozu  Chbhb,  whose  exaggerations 
and  violent  personalities  amuse  all  readers  except  such  as  are 
the  objects  of  them.  No  one  is  safe  nowadays  from  black-mail. 
The  largest  circulation  (200,000  copies)  is  claimed  by  the  Yorozu 
Chbhb,  the  Osaka  Asahi  coming  next  with  150,000.  Some  few 
papers  have  an  English  column.  The  Japan  Times  is  published 
entirely  in  English.  Among  the  magazines,  the  Taiyb  is  perhaps 
that  which  enjoys  the  greatest  vogue  with  general  readers  all 
over  the  country ;  pure  literature  is  represented  by  the  Teikoku 
Bungaku  and  two  or  three  others ;  red-hot  chauvinism  by  the 
Nihon-jin  ;  Christianity  by  the  Rikugb  Zasshi  and  several  others, 
and  satire  and  humour  by  the  Maru-Maru  Chimbun,  or  Japanese 
"  Punch,"  while  medicine,  chemistry,  anthropology,  philology, 
political  economy,  and  other  sciences  all  have  their  organs,  some 
of  them  conducted  with  great  ability  and  a  closeness  to  European 
models  which  is  almost  startling.  The  names  of  Shimada, 
Tokutomi.  Kuga,  and  Asaina  may  be  mentioned  among  those 
of  the  leading  Tokyo  journalists. 

Newspapers,  like  books,  are  published  in  what  is  called  the 
"  Written  Language," — a  literary  dialect  considerably  removed 
from  the  colloquial  both  in  grammar  and  in  vocabulary,  the 
simple  plan  of  writing  as  one  speaks  not  having  yet  approved 
itself  to  the  taste  of  any  Far-Eastern  nation.  But  though  the  style 
of  Japanese  newspapers  is  not  popular,  their  prices  are.  Most  of 
the  larger  journals  charge  only  two  sen — about  a  halfpenny — for  a 
single  copy,  and  from  thirty-five  to  fifty  sen  per  month  ;  the  smaller 
journals,  one  and  a  half  sen  for  a  single  copy,  and  twenty  or 
thirty  sen  per  month.  Several  have  rough  illustrations.  Most  now 
h&ve  feuilletons  devoted  to  the  publication  of  novels  in  serial  form. 
Extras  are  issued  whenever  any  notable  event  occurs.  During 
a    change    of  ministry,    for  instance,  and  especially  in  war  time, 


Newspapers.  353 

the  cry  of"  " Gogzvait  Gogwaif"  ("Extra!  Extra!  ")  becomes  the 
commonest  of  all  street  sounds. 

The  Japanese  press-laws,  theretofore  extremely  rigorous,  were 
at  length  softened  in  1897  and  again  in  1900.  The  Ministers  of 
the  Army  and  Navy,  it  is  true,  retain  the  power  of  prohibiting 
the  sale  or  distribution  of  any  issue  of  a  newspaper  that  has 
disclosed  military  secrets,  and  a  similar  power  is  vested  in  the 
Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs  to  suppress  the  publication  of  anything 
tending  to  embroil  Japan  with  other  governments.  Perseverance 
in  the  publication  of  such  forbidden  items,  insults  to  the  dignity 
of  the  Imperial  family,  attacks  on  existing  institutions,  and  breaches 
of  the  public  peace  and  morality  render  the  offending  journal 
liable  to  a  criminal  prosecution,  which  may  end  in  total  suppres- 
sion and  the  confiscation  of  the  plant  used.  Furthermore,  fines 
ranging  from  5  to  500  yen,  and  imprisonment  for  terms  varying 
from  one  month  to  two  years  are  provided  for.  All  newspapers 
have  to  put  up  a  certain  sum  as  surety  for  good  behaviour.  This 
varies  according  to  localities  ;  at  Tokyo  it  is  1,000  yen. 

Even  the  present  state  of  things  will  appear  stringent  enough 
to  home  readers.  But  let  us  be  just.  The  thoughtful  enquirer 
will  surely  always  lay  most  stress,  not  on  the  point  at  which 
any  given  institution  has  arrived,  but  on  the  direction  in 
which  it  is  tending.  Now  the  marked  tendency  of  all  existing 
Japanese  institutions  is  towards  greater  liberality.  The  restrictions 
which  still  hamper  the  full  liberty  of  the  press  in  Japan  are 
not,  historically  speaking,  retrograde  measures,  that  is,  they  do 
not  come  after  better  things  in  the  past.  Under  the  old  feudal 
regime,  not  only  did  liberty  of  speech  not  exist  in  fact ;  the  right 
to  some  measure  of  it  was  not  so  much  as  recognised  in  theory, 
nor  would  the  men  who  made  the  revolution  of  1868  have  dallied 
with  the  idea  for  a  moment  in  their  then  frame  of  mind.  They 
would  have  shuddered  at  it  as  sacrilege.  The  idea  has  entered 
Japan  more  recently,  in  the  wake  of  English  and  American  text- 
books for  schools  and  of  Anglo-Saxon  ideas  generally. 

Imprisonment    for   press   offences  is  still  common.     So  openly 


354  Newspapers. 

has  it  come  to  be  reckoned  among  the  probable  incidents  of  a 
journalistic  career  that  most  papers  employ  what  is  called  "a 
prison  editor,"  that  is,  a  man  who,  though  nominally  editor-in- 
chief,  has  little  or  nothing  to  do  but  go  to  prison  when  the 
paper  gets  into  trouble.  The  real  editor,  meanwhile,  remains  an 
uncrowned  king,  figuring  on  the  books  simply  as  a  contributor. 
In  fact,  the  traditional  Japanese  fondness  for  dual  offices  has 
cropped  up  again  in  modern  guise.  Formerly  there  was  an 
Emperor  de  jure  and  an  Emperor  de  facto,  there  were  nominal 
Daimyos  and  the  Daimyos'  right-hand  men  with  whom  lay  all 
the  actual  power.  Now  there  are  real  editors  and  dummy  "  prison 
editors.''  But  much  practice  has  made  ready  writers.  Recourse  to 
allegory,  double  e?iienle,  and  other  ingenious  devices  for  conveying 
"more  than  meets  the  ear,"  generally  suffices  to  keep  Japanese 
journalists  on  the  safe  side  of  the  law.  Taking  one  thing  with 
another,  it  seems  surprising  that  any  man  of  ability  should  be 
tempted  to  enter  the  journalistic  profession  in  Japan.  The  highest 
remuneration  given  barely  exceeds  ^120  a  year;  but  only  some 
half-dozen  individuals  in  the  empire  succeed  in  climbing  to  that 
giddy  height.     From  ^30  to  ^50  a  year  is  the  usual  pay. 

The  foreign  press  at  the  "  Open  Ports "  is  principally  in 
English  hands.  The  newspapers  there  published  are  rendered 
more  interesting  than  the  majority  of  colonial  journals  by  the 
constant  and  striking  changes  in  Japanese  politics  and  social  life 
that  have  to  be  chronicled.  Think  what  a  paradise  for  the  journal- 
ist must  a  country  be  where  the  administrative  organisation  has 
been  recast  a  dozen  times  in  less  than  three  dozen  years,  and 
everything  else  revolves  in  similar  kaleidoscopic  fashion !  But 
this  paradise  has  its  drawbacks.  Fancy-free  till  the  year  1899, 
the  foreign  press  in  Japan  saw  itself  thenceforward  subjected,  as 
a  consequence  of  the  abandonment  of  treaty  privileges,  to  the 
same  disabilities  as  are  imposed  on  native  printed  speech.  This 
reactionary  step  had  been  eagerly  awaited  by  the  Japanese  news- 
paper men,  who,  though  crying  out  for  more  liberty  themselves, 
chuckled  at  the  prospect  of  seeing  their  foreign  brethren  become 


Nobility.  355 

their  companions  in  misfortune.  This  is  but  human  nature  : — 
11  Nous  avons  ious  assez  deforce  pour  supporter  les  maux  c£  aulrui" 
In  the  case  of  one  important  branch  of  modern  journalism, 
the  Japanese  government  has  struck  a  blow  whose  results  may 
be  world-wide.  When  hostilities  with  Russia  broke  out  in  the 
spring  of  1904,  foreign  newspaper  men  immediately  flocked  to 
Tokyo,  eager  for  the  fray.  They  were  politely  received,  they 
were  dined,  they  were  wined,  they  were  taken  about  the  Inland  Sea 
in  a  yacht,  and  continually  received  assurances  to  the  effect  that 
they  would  be  allowed  to  start  for  the  front  to-morrow  or,  at 
the  latest,  next  week  or  next  month.  But  the  to-morrow  was  so 
long  of  coming  that  most  of  the  correspondents,  weary  of  this 
endless  waiting,  returned  home  angrier  and  possibly  wiser  men, 
though  not  in  martial  experience.  Some  few,  who  were  actually 
granted  a  peep  of  the  seat  of  war,  found  that  their  telegrams  to 
the  home  papers  were  so  greatly  delayed  in  transit  through 
Korea  as  to  be  rendered  useless.  Evidently,  the  Japanese 
government  considers  war  correspondence  little  better  than  a 
roundabout  means  of  assisting  the  enemy  to  a  knowledge  of 
one's  own  military  movements.  The  experience  of  other  nations, 
from  Fran co- Prussian  days  down  to  England's  big  bungle  in 
South  Africa,  was  there  to  instruct  them ;  and  they  elected  to 
safeguard  their  own  troops  at  the  risk  of  arousing  the  hostility 
of  the  foreign  press,  whose  enormous  outlay  to  procure  war  news 
had  thus  been  made  of  none  effect. 

No.     See  Theatre. 

Nobility.  The  Japanese  nobility  may  be  called  very  old  or 
very  new,  according  to  the  way  one  looks  at  it.  In  its  present 
form,  it  dates  from  the  7th  July,  1884,  when  the  Chinese  titles 
of  kd,  ko*  haku,  ski,  and  da?i,  corresponding  respectively  to  our 
duke    (or  prince),    marquis,    count,    viscount,    and    baron,    were 

*  The  two  ko's,  though  chancing  to  sound  alike,  are  different  words  written  with 
different  Chinese  characters.  The  first  is  ?£  (Chinese  kung),  the  second  is  ^ 
Chinese  ho7i\. 


356  Nobility. 

bestowed  by  Imperial  edict  on  a  number  of  distinguished  persons. 
But  there  had  been  an  aristocracy  before.  Properly  speaking, 
there  had  been  two, — the  Kuge  who  were  descended  from  the 
younger  sons  of  ancient  Mikados,  and  the  Daimyos  who  were 
the  feudal  lords  lifted  to  title  and  wealth  by  the  sword  and  by 
the  favour  of  the  Shoguns.  When  feudalism  fell,  the  Daimyos 
lost  their  territorial  titles,  and  were  amalgamated  with  the  Kuge 
under  the  designation  of  Kzvazoku,  or  "  flowery  families,'''  which 
is  still  the  current  name  for  noblemen  generally,  irrespective  of 
what  their  particular  grade  may  be.  These  aristocrats  by  birth 
formed  the  nucleus  of  the  new  nobility  of  1884,  among  the  five 
grades  of  which  they  were  distributed  according  to  their  historical 
and  other  claims  to  distinction.  To  them  has  gradually  been 
added  a  number  of  new  men,  eminent  for  their  talents  or  for 
services  rendered  to  the  government.  The  successful  termination 
of  the  first  China  war  naturally  witnessed  a  large  batch  of  new 
creations.  The  members  of  the  nobility  receive  pensions  from  the 
civil  list.  They  are  also  placed  under  special  restrictions.  For 
instance,  they  may  not  marry  without  official  permission.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  new  Constitution  grants  to  a  certain  number  of 
them  the  privilege  of  sitting  in  the  upper  house  of  the  Imperial 
Diet. 

A  total  absence  of  snobbishness  towards  the  nobility  is  a 
commendable  feature  of  the  Japanese  character.  They  do  not, 
like  us  Britishers  and  Yankees,  "  dearly  love  a  lord," — follow 
him  about,  imitate  him,  snap  at  him  with  kodaks,  egg  on  theii 
daughters  to  snap  him  up  in  a  manner  still  more  daring.  They 
simply  do  not  care.  In  their  eyes,  "a  man's  a  man  for  a' 
that."  Very  often  they  do  not  so  much  as  know  whether  the 
man  has  a  title  or  not,  and  except  in  print  rarely  make  use  of 
it,  but  mention,  for  instance,  Count  Okuma  as  Ohtma  San, 
"  Monsieur  Okuma,"  as  the  French,  too,  would  often  say.  In 
fact — now  we  come  to  think  of  it — this  absence  of  snobbish 
feeling  should  not  be  specially  counted  to  the  Japanese  as  right- 
eousness.    Most  nations  resemble  them  in  not  having  it.     The  taint 


Numerical  Categories. 


35v 


of  snobbery  is  so  peculiarly  Anglo-Saxon  that  we  doubt  whether 
any  language  but  English  even  lias  a  word  for  it. 

Numerical  Categories.  Number  has  long  exercised  a 
peculiar  fascination  over  the  Far-Eastern  mind.  European  lan- 
guages, no  doubt,  have  such  expressions  as  "the  Four  Cardinal 
Virtues"  and  "the  Seven  Deadly  Sins  ;"  but  it  is  no  part  of  our 
mental  disposition  to  divide  up  and  parcel  out  almost  all  things 
visible  and  invisible  into  numerical  categories  fixed  by  unchanging 
custom,  as  is  the  case  among  the  nations  from  India  eastward. 
The  Chinese  speak  of  their  "Three  Religions,"  of  "the  Three 
Forms  of  Obedience,"  "the  Four  Classics,"  "the  Five  Duties," 
"the  Eight  Diagrams,"  "  the  Four-and-Twenty  Paragons  of  Filial 
Piety,*'  whole  pages  of  their  books  of  reference  being  devoted 
to  lists  of  expressions  of  this  kind.  The  Japanese  have  followed 
suit.  They  have  adopted  most  of  the  Chinese  numerical  categories, 
and  have  invented  new  ones  of  their  own.  Here  are  ten  of  the 
commonest  (ten  being  the  Japanese  dozen),  chosen  from  among 
many  scores  :— 

The  Three  Views  (j~„-Sr),  namely,  Matsushima  near  Sendai 
in  the  North,  Miyajima  in  the  Inland  Sea,  and  Ama-no-Hashidate 
on  the  Sea  of  Japan.  These  are  considered  the  three  most  beautiful 
places  in  the  empire. 

The  Three  Capitals  and  Five  Ports  (^-.^JS.*^:).  The 
former  are  Tokyo,  Kyoto,  and  Osaka ;  the  latter  are  Yokohama, 
Kobe,  Nagasaki,  Niigata,  and  Hakodate. 

Thk  Five  Festivals  (j5L^^7)-  They  are  the  7th  January, 
the  3rd  March,  the  5th  May,  the  7th  Jul}-,  and  the  9th  September. 
(See  Article  on  Festivals.) 

"The    Seven    Herbs  of  Autumn  "    ($^0  *-trJ§L),    sung   by 
Japanese  poets  from  very  early  times  : — 
Hagi  ga  hana, 

Obana,  Kuzu-h&aa, 
Nadeshiko  no 


358  Numerical  Categories. 

Hana,  ominaeshi, 
Mata  Fuji-bakama, 
Asa-gao  no  hana.* 

The  hagi  is  the  lespedeza.  The  obana  is  identified  with  the 
flowering  eulalia  (susuki),  a  beautiful  tall  grass  which  sways  in  the 
wind  and  seems  to  beckon  to  the  wanderer  over  pathless  moors. 
The  kuzu  is  the  pueraria,  which  bears  masses  of  purple  blossom. 
The  nadeshiko  is  the  wild  pink ;  the  ominaeshi,  a  tiny  yellow 
flower,  the  patrinia.  The  fuji-bakama ,  with  small  pink  and  white 
flowers,  is  the  eupatorium.  The  asa-gao,  in  modern  usage,  is  the 
convolvulus ;  but  this  is  said  to  be  an  imported  plant,  and  the 
asa-gao  of  early  days  was  probably  either  the  platycodon  grandi- 
florum  or  else  an  althea. 

[There  are  also  Seven  Herbs  of  Spring  (^|LC7)  ^JiL)  ;  but 
these  are  of  a  more  homely  nature, — parsley,  chickweed,  etc. — 
and  are  made  into  a  sort  of  thick  soup,  which  is  eaten  on  the 
seventh  day  of  the  first  moon,  with  a  view  to  warding  off  all 
diseases  during  the  coming  year.] 

"The  Eight  Views"  (/^"§f)-  Following  an  old  Chinese 
precedent,  almost  every  picturesque  neighbourhood  in  Japan  has 
its  eight  views.  The  best-known  are  "  the  Eight  Views  of  Lake 
Biwa"  (Omi  Hakkei),  which  are  enumerated  as  follows: — the 
autumn  moon  seen  from  Ishiyama,  the  evening  snow  on  Hira- 
yama,  the  sunset  at  Seta,  the  evening  bell  of  Miidera,  the  boats 
sailing  back  from  Yabase,  the  bright  sky  with  a  breeze  at  Awazu, 
rain  by  night  at  Karasaki,  and  the  wild  geese  alighting  at  Katata. 
Pretty  and  thoroughly  Oriental  ideas, — are  they  not  ? 

"The  Eight  Great  Islands"  (^v^J$J)>  namely,  the  eight 
largest  islands  of  the  Japanese  archipelago ;  hence,  in  poetical 
parlance,  Japan  itself. 

"The  One-and-Twenty  Great  Anthologies"    (J^-^^^ft 

*  This    list   in    verse   of   the    flowers    in    question  is  by  Yamanoe-no-Okura    a  poet  of 
the  first  half  of  the  eighth  century. 


Paper.  359 

A).  rrhese  are  the  standard  collections  of  Japanese  classical 
poetry,  brought  together  by  Imperial  command  during  the  middle 
ages, — the  first  in  A.D.  905,  the  last  circa  1440. 

"The  Three-axd-Thirty  Places"  (jE.^-f-jH.^Jr)  sacred  to 
Kwannon,  the  Goddess  of  Mercy. 

"The  Six-and-Thirty  Poetical  Geniuses  "  (jE.^^SBC'Ul). 
A  full  list  of  their  names  is  given  in  Anderson's  Catalogue  of 
Japanese  and  Chinese  Paiiiiings,  p.    145. 

"The  Fifty-three  Stages"  (JL-^JL?^)  on  the  Tokaido. 
Though  the  railway  has  done  away  with  the  old  Tokaido  journey 
by  road,  these  fifty-three  stages  wrill  always  remain  familiar  to 
lovers  of  Japanese  painting  in  the  colour-prints  of  Hokusai, 
Hiroshige,  and  other  old-time  artists. 

Painting.     See  Art. 

Paper.  The  Japanese  use  paper  for  a  score  of  purposes  to 
which  we  in  the  West  have  never  thought  of  putting  it,  one 
reason  being  that  their  process  of  manufacture  leaves  uncut  the 
long  fibres  of  the  bark  from  which  the  paper  is  made,  and 
consequently  renders  it  much  tougher  than  ours.  Fans,  screens, 
and  lanterns,  sometimes  even  clothes,  are  made  of  paper.  A 
sheet  of  nice,  soft  paper  does  duty  for  a  pocket-handkerchief. 
Paper  replaces  glass  windows,  and  even  to  a  certain  extent 
the  walls  which  with  us  separate  room  from  room.  Japanese 
housemaids  do  their  dusting  with  little  brooms  made  of  strips 
of  paper ;  and  dabs  of  soft  paper  serve,  instead  of  lint,  to  arrest 
bleeding.  Oil-paper  is  used  for  making  umbrellas,  rain-coats, 
tobacco-pouches,  and  air-cushions,  as  well  as  for  protecting  par- 
cels from  the  wet  in  a  manner  of  which  no  European  paper  is 
capable.  Paper  torn  into  strips  and  twisted  takes  the  place  of 
string  in  a  hundred  minor  domestic  uses.  We  have  even  seen  the 
traces  of  a  harness  mended  with  it,  though  we  are  bound  to  say 
that  the  result,  with  a  restive  horse,  was  not  altogether  satisfactory. 


360  Parkes  (Sir  Harry). 

Then,  too,  there  is  the  so-called  leather  paper,  which  is  used  for 
boxes  and  more  recently  for  dados  and  hangings,  and  the  crape 
paper  now  familiar  abroad  as  a  material  for  doilies  and  illustrated 
booklets.  Japanese  writing-paper,  properly  so  called,  lends  itself 
admirably  to  the  native  brush,  but  not  to  our  pointed  pens,  which 
stick  and  splutter  in  its  porous  fibre.  But  a  factory  at  Tokyo 
now  turns  out  large  quantities  of  note-paper  sufficiently  sized 
and  glazed  for  European  use,  and  remarkable  for  its  untearable 
quality.  Correspondents  should,  however,  abstain  from  com- 
mitting to  this  medium  any  communication  delicate  in  its  nature 
and  liable  to  be  pried  into  by  indiscreet  eyes ;  for  the  envelopes 
can  be  opened  with  perfect  ease,  and  shut  again  without  any 
evidence  remaining  of  their  having  been  tampered  with.  Other 
machine-made  paper  similar  to  that  of  Europe  is  also  now 
manufactured  for  the  printing  of  books  and  newspapers.  This 
has  the  advantage  of  being  able  to  receive  an  impression  on 
both  sides,  whereas  Japanese  paper,  owing  to  its  porosity,  admits 
of  being  printed  on  one  side  only. 

Several  plants  and  trees  contribute  their  bark  to  the  manufacture 
of  Japanese  paper.  The  paper  mulberry  {Broussonetia  papyri/era) 
is  the  most  important  of  these ;  but  the  one  most  easily  recognised 
by  the  unlearned  is  the  Edgetvorlhia  papyri/era,  which  has  the 
peculiarity  that  its  branches  always  divide  into  three  at  every 
articulation,  whence  the  Japanese  name  of  milsu-mala,  or  "  the 
three  forks." 

Book  recommended.     Rein's  Industries  of  Japan,  p    389.  et  scq.     The  description 
is  full  and  elaborate. 

Parkes  (Sir  Harry).  Born  at  Birchill's  Hall,  near  Walsall, 
Staffordshire,  in  1828,  Sir  Harry  Parkes  was  left  an  orphan 
at  the  age  of  five,  and  came  out  to  Canton,  when  still  a  lad, 
to  be  under  the  charge  of  his  kinsman,  the  Rev.  Charles 
Gutzlaff,  a  missionary  and  consular  interpreter  well-known  for 
his  writings  on  Chinese  subjects.  .  Sir  Harry  thus  acquired  at 
an  early  age  that  intimate  knowledge  of  the  Chinese  language 
and    of  the    Oriental    character,    which    helped    to  make  of  him 


Parkes  (Sir  Harry).  361 

England's  most  trusty  and  able  servant  in  the  Far  East  for  a 
period  of  forty-three  years,  that  is,  until  his  death  as  British 
Minister  to  the  Court  of  Peking,  in  1885.  Beginning  as  what 
would  now  be  termed  a  student  interpreter  on  the  staff  of 
Sir  Henry  Pottinger  during  the  first  China  War  of  1842,  he 
occupied  in  turn  most  of  the  Chinese  consular  posts,  notably 
that  of  Canton,  where  he  was  appointed  Commissioner  during 
the  occupation  of  the  city  by  the  British  troops.  He  was 
also  instrumental  in  negotiating  a  treaty  with  Siam.  But  the 
most  striking  episode  of  his  life  was  his  capture  by  the  Chinese 
during  the  war  of  i860,  when,  together  with  a  few  companions, 
he  was  sent  by  Lord  Elgin  under  a  flag  of  truce  to  sign  a  conven- 
tion of  peace  with  Prince  Tsai,  the  Chinese  Emperor's  nephew, 
but  was  treacherously  seized,  cast  into  a  dungeon,  and  put  to 
the  torture.  Most  of  the  party  fell  victims  to  Chinese  barbarity  ; 
but  Sir  Harry's  unflinching  resolution  triumphed  equally  over 
torture  and  over  diplomatic  wiles,  and  he  was  eventually  set  free. 
In  1865  he  was  appointed  Minister  Plenipotentiary  and  Envoy 
Extraordinary  to  the  Court  of  Yedo,  which  post  he  continued  to 
hold  till  1883,  when  he  was  promoted  to  Peking.  His  career 
in  Japan  coincided  with  the  most  stirring  years  of  modern 
Japanese  history.  He  even  helped  to  mould  that  history.  When, 
at  the  beginning  of  the  civil  war  of  1868,  all  his  diplomatic 
colleagues  were  inclined  to  support  the  Shogun,  Sir  Harry,  better 
informed  than  the)'  as  to  the  historical  rights  of  the  Mikado  and 
the  growing  national  feeling  in  favour  of  supporting  those  rights, 
threw  the  whole  weight  of  British  influence  into  the  loyal  side 
against  the  rebels ; — not  only  so,  but  he  carried  his  reluctant 
colleagues  with  him. 

Sir  Harry  was  always  a  staunch  supporter  of  his  country's 
commercial  interests,  and  a  believer  in  the  "  gunboat  policy  "  of 
his  master,  Lord  Palmerston.  His  outspoken  threats  earned  for 
him  the  dread  and  dislike  of  the  Japanese  during  his  sojourn 
m  Japan.  But  no  sooner  had  he  quitted  Tokyo,  than  they 
began    to    acknowledge    that    his    high-handed    policy    had   been 


362  Parkes  (Sir  Harry). 

founded  in  reason.  The  respect  felt  for  his  talents  was  pithily 
expressed  by  a  high  Japanese  official,  who  said  to  a  friend  of 
the  present  writer  :  "  Sir  Harry  Parkes  was  the  only  foreigner  in 
Japan  whom  we  could  not  twist  round  our  little  finger."  But 
courage,  talent,  and  patriotism  were  not  Sir  Harry's  only  titles  to 
lasting  fame.  We  like  him  better  still  as  a  practical  philan- 
thropist labouring  for  the  good,  not  merely  of  his  own  people, 
but  of  aliens.  He  it  was  who  persuaded  the  Japanese  to  adopt 
vaccination,  with  the  result  that  whereas  the  percentage  of  pock- 
pitted  persons  was  enormous  only  a  quarter  of  a  century  ago, 
such  disfigurement  is  now  scarcely  more  common  than  at  home. 
Lock-hospitals  were  another  of  his  creations,  as  was  also  the 
elaborate  lighthouse  system  which  has  so  greatly  lessened  the 
chance  of  shipwreck  on  this  dangerous  coast.  We  cull  but  two 
or  three  items  out  of  a  score, — enough  perhaps,  though,  to  indicate 
the  difference  between  this  truly  great  man  and  the  scurvy  pack 
who  used  to  yelp  at  his  heels. 

Even  now,  some  twenty  years  after  his  disappearance  from 
the  Japanese  political  scene,  the  British  residents  in  Japan — and 
not  they  alone,  but  the  "old  hands'7  of  all  nationalities — continue 
to  hold  his  memory  dear.  How  often,  under  every  one  of  his 
successors,  have  we  not  heard  the  exclamation,  "  Oh !  for  an 
hour  of  Sir  Harry  Parkes  !  "  But  we  incline  to  think  that  the 
comparisons  made  by  local  people  are  sometimes  tinged  with 
injustice,  and  that  these  critics  fail  to  realise  that  the  deterioration 
of  which  they  persistently  complain  results  partly  from  circum- 
stances beyond  the  reach  of  any  personality  to  control.  Rapid 
transit,  and  especially  telegraphy,  have  revolutionised  diplomacy 
since  about  1880,  or  rather  they  have  killed  it.  There  may,  it 
is  true,  still  be  one  great  diplomat  at  headquarters,  as  minister 
for  foreign  affairs ;  but  under  existing  conditions,  he  will 
"  Bear,  like  the  Turk,  no  brother  near  the  throne." 
The  title  of  "  Plenipotentiary,"  with  which  the  diplomat  accredited 
to  a  foreign  court  continues  to  be  nominally  decorated,  has  become 
simple  irony  in  days  when  the  force  of  events  has  reduced   him 


Perry  (Commodore).  363 

to  the  position  of  a  clerk,  whose  work  it  is  to  translate  cypher 
telegrams  which  make  of  himself  a  mere  cypher.  The  field  is  no 
longer  open  for  original  thought  and  daring  action ;  there  is  no 
longer  any  responsibility  to  take,  for  every  point  must  be  referred 
home.  Only  the  outward  show  survives,  —  the  grand  house, 
the  elaborate  dinners  to  les  chers  collegucs,  the  congratulatory 
visits  on  various  august  occasions,  perhaps  an  occasional  chance 
of  snatching  some  snippet  of  a  "concession"  for  railway  iron, 
or  what  not,  for  his  nationals.  But  that  is  all,  and  Sir  Harry 
Parkes  himself,  if  brought  to  life  again,  could  scarcely  do  more. 
What  has  happened  in  Japan  has  happened  simultaneously 
all  over  the  world.  In  time,  we  suppose,  the  fate  which  has 
overtaken  so  many  other  venerable  institutions  will  overtake  the 
diplomatic  career : — it  will  die  a  natural  death,  drop  out  of 
modern  life,  because  no  longer  suited  to  modern  conditions. 

Book  recommended.     The  Life  of  Sir  Harry  Parties,  by  S.  Lane-Poole  and  F.  V. 
Dick  ins. 

Perry  (Commodore).  Matthew  Calbraith  Perry,  Commodore 
in  the  United  States  Navy,  was  born  at  Newport,  Rhode  Island, 
in  the  year  1794,  and  died  at  New  York  in  1858.  In  the  naval 
circles  of  his  day,  Perry's  name  was  well-known  as  that  of  an 
upright  and  energetic  officer ;  but  his  title  to  lasting  fame  rests 
on  his  having  been  the  man  wrho  opened  Japan  to  the  world. 
Various  attempts,  American  and  others,  had  been  previously  made 
in  order  to  attain  an  end  so  desirable  on  commercial  grounds,  so 
necessary  for  the  protection  of  shipwrecked  mariners.  Liberalism, 
too,  was  then  in  the  air.  Unrestricted  international  intercourse  was 
at  that  time  regarded  by  all  Christian  nations  as  an  indispu- 
table right,  a  sacred  duty.  Americans  could  with  some  good 
grace,  or  at  least  without  breach  of  logic,  insist  on  the  door  of 
Eastern  Asia  being  flung  open  to  them ;  for  they  had  not  yet 
begun  to  barricade  themselves  behind  a  Chinese  wall  of  exclu- 
siveness. 

In  July,  1853,  Commodore  Perry's  fleet  anchored  off  Uraga, 
a  port  at  the  entrance  of  Yedo  Bay.     Setting  aside  all  the  obstacles 


364  Perry  (Commodore). 

which  Japanese  astuteness  sought  to  place  in  his  way,  Perry 
delivered  to  the  representatives  of  the  Shogun  the  letter  of 
President  Fillimore  demanding  the  establishment  of  international 
relations.  Then  he  steamed  away  to  Luchu  and  China.  Next 
spring  he  returned  for  an  answer.  The  answer  took  the  shape 
of  Japan's  first  foreign  treaty,  which  was  signed  at  Kanagawa  on 
the  31st  March,  1854.  By  this  treaty  the  ports  ofShimodaand 
Hakodate  were  opened  to  American  trade,  and  good  treatment 
promised  to  shipwrecked  American  mariners.  Such  were  the  first- 
fruits  of  the  triumph  over  Japan's  stubborn  refusal  to  recognise  the 
existence  of  the  outside  world.  Treaties  with  the  other  nations  of 
Christendom,  and  a  revolution  which,  after  plunging  Japan  into 
confusion  and  bloodshed,  has  regenerated  on  Western  lines  all  her 
institutions,  ideas,  and  aims, — this,  which  it  takes  so  few  words 
to  say,  but  which  implies  so  much,  is  the  result  of  what  Perry 
was  instrumental  in  doing.  Many  things  precious  to  the  lover 
of  art  and  antiquity  perished  in  the  process.  For  Old  Japan 
was  like  an  oyster  : — to  open  it  was  to  kill  it. 

Perry  being  thus  a  hero,  fancy  and  myth  have  already  begun 
to  gather  round  his  name.  Patriotic  writers  have  discoursed  on 
"the  moral  grandeur  of  his  peaceful  triumph,"  and  have  even 
gone  so  far  as  to  try  to  get  people  to  believe  that  the  Japanese 
actually  enjoyed  knuckling  under  to  him.  The  erection  in  1901, 
amid  international  rejoicings,  of  a  memorial  on  the  spot  where  the 
Commodore  landed,  will  assist  the  mythopceic  process,  if  memory 
lets  slip  the  circumstance  that  this  memorial  was  proposed,  not 
by  the  Japanese,  but  by  an  American  survivor  of  Perry's  expedi- 
tion, and  that  the  Japanese  government's  share  in  the  matter  was 
but  a  courteous  following  of  American  official  lead.  Perry's  was  a 
peaceful  triumph  only  in  a  catachrestical  sense,  analogous  to  that 
of  Napoleon's  maxim  that  "  Providence  is  on  the  side  of  the  big 
battalions."  To  speak  plainly,  Perry  triumphed  by  frightening 
the  weak,  ignorant,  utterly  unprepared,  and  insufficiently  armed 
Japanese  out  of  their  senses.  If  he  did  not  use  his  cannon,  it 
was  only  because  his  preparations  for  using  them  and  his  threats 


Philosophy.  365 

of  using  them  were  too  evidently  genuine  to  be  safely  disregarded 
by  those  who  lay  at  his  mercy.  His  own  Narrative  is  explicit 
on  this  point.  Nor  shall  we,  at  least,  blame  him.  Perry  was 
a  naval  officer,  and  he  acted  with  the  vigour  of  a  naval  officer, 
carrying  out  the  orders  of  his  superiors,  and  at  the  same  time 
bringing  to  bear  on  the  situation  the  tact  of  a  born  diplomatist. 
The  event  shows  that  the  "  gunboat  policy,"  so  often  decried  by 
amiable  but  misinformed  persons,  is  really  and  truly  a  policy 
well-suited  to  certain  times  and  places, — to  circumstances  in 
which  any  other  method  of  action  is  liable  to  be  interpreted  as 
a  sign  of  weakness.  Might  is  right  in  many  cases.  The  "gunboat 
policy  "  is  the  only  one  which  is  understood  by  a  semi-civilised 
Oriental  power,  such  as  Japan  then  was  and  remained  for  several 
years  after.  We  therefore  give  Perry  all  honour.  As  for  the 
sentimental  gloss  which  has  been  laid  over  his  actions,  few  will 
probably  be  found  to  pay  any  heed  to  it. 

Books  recommended.  Narrative  of  the  Expedition  of  an  American  Squadron 
tinder  Commodore  Perry,  by  Perry  and  Hawks,  Vol.  I. — Matthew  CalbraitJi  Perry,  by 
Rev  W.  E.  Griffis. 

Philosophy.  The  Japanese  have  never  had  a  philosophy 
of  their  own.  Formerly  they  bowed  down  before  the  shrine  of 
Confucius  or  of  Wang  Yang  Ming.*  They  now  bow  down  before 
the  shrine  of  Herbert  Spencer  or  of  Nietsche.  Their  philosophers 
(so-called)  have  been  mere  expositors  of  imported  ideas.  The 
names  of  the  principal  old-fashioned  ones  will  be  found  on  page 
103.  In  our  own  day,  a  new  light  arose  in  the  person  of  Fuku- 
zawa  Yukichi,  the  "Sage  of  Mita,"  thus  called  from  the  district 
of  Tokyo  in  which  he  latterly  resided.  So  wide-spread  is  the 
influence  exercised  by  this  remarkable  man  that  no  account  of 
Japan,  however  brief,  would  be  complete  without  some  reference 
to  his  life  and  opinions. 

Born  in  1835  anc^  dying  in  1901,  Fukuzawa's  youth  coincided 
with  the  period  of  ferment  inaugurated  by  the  first  contact,  with 

*  O-yo-mei,  in  the  Japanese  pronunciation.  His  chief  Japanese  expositor  was  Nakae 
Toju  (1605-78),  commonly  known  as  "the  Sac^e  of  Omi." 


66  Philosophy. 


foreigners,  his  mature  age  with  the  settlement  of  all  the  institutions 
that  go  to  make  up  modern  Japan.  He  was  a  Samurai  from 
one  of  the  southern  provinces,  poor,  and  left  an  orphan  at  an 
early  age.  But  he  made  his  way  first  to  Osaka,  where  Dutch 
was  taught  in  semi-privacy  under  plea  of  the  study  of  medicine, 
then  in  1858  to  Yedo.  One  of  the  most  striking  pages  in  his 
striking  Autobiography  is  where  he  tells  of  his  disappointment 
on  discovering,  by  a  visit  to  the  then  infant  settlement  of  Yoko- 
hama, that  the  language  current  among  the  merchants  was  not 
Dutch,  but  English.  Nothing  daunted,  he  tackled  the  new  task. 
At  that  period,  anti-foreign  feeling  still  ran  high ;  all  persons 
who  showed  any  leaning  towards  alien  ways  were  ipso  facto 
suspects  liable  to  personal  violence.  Nevertheless,  translations  of 
various  foreign  works  and  documents  had  gradually  become  a 
necessity  of  the  times.  Fukuzawa  undertook  them,  and  made 
himself  so  useful  that  he  was  attached  to  the  staff  of  the  first 
embassy  which  was  sent  abroad  in  i860.  But  on  returning  to 
his  native  shores,  he  thenceforth  steadily  declined  all  connection 
with  officialdom,  and  resumed — never  more  to  drop  it — the  self- 
imposed  task  of  enlightening  his  countrymen,  detaching  them 
from  Orientalism,  Europeanising  them,  or,  it  might  be  better 
said,  Americanising  them, — for  America  was  ever  his  cynosure 
among  Western  lands.  The  democracy  which  he  had  found 
there,  the  simple  family  life,  .  and  also,  it  must  be  owned,  the 
common-sense  empiricism,  the  "  Franklinism "  (if  one  may  so 
style  it)  of  America  exactly  suited  his  keen,  practical,  but  some- 
what pedestrian  intellect.  The  strong  devotional  bent  of  Anglo- 
Saxondom  struck  no  sympathetic  chord  in  his  heart.  He 
always  regarded  religion  as  mere  leading-strings  for  the  ignorant. 
Spencer's  agnostic  philosophy  attracted  him  on  its  negative  side ; 
but  almost  his  whole  activity  displayed  itself  in  a  utilitarian 
direction, — in  teaching  his  countrymen  how  to  construct  electric 
batteries,  how  to  found  cannon,  how  to  study  such  practical 
sciences  as  geography  and  elementary  physics,  to  acquire  such 
knowledge  concerning  foreign  institutions  as  could  be  put  to  use 


Philosophy.  367 

in  money-making,  to  lead  decent,  self-respecting  lives,  to  discard 
foolish  old  customs,  to  diffuse  well-being  throughout  the  nation 
by  levelling  ranks, — he  himself  giving  the  example,  for  he  dropped 
his  Samurai  privileges,  and  became  a  mere  commoner,  and,  as 
already  noticed,  uniformly  rejected  all  official  preferments  and 
emoluments.  He  it  was  who  first  introduced  into  Japan  the 
practice  of  lecturing  and  public  speaking,  for  which  several  of 
his  most  progressive  contemporaries  had  declared  the  Japanese 
language  unfit.  He  it  was  who  led  the  way  in  fitting  the  language 
better  still  to  bear  its  new  responsibilities  by  coining  equivalents 
for  English  technical  terms.  Besides  composing,  compiling, 
translating,  paraphrasing,  and  abridging  a  whole  library  of  books 
and  editing  a  popular  newspaper,  Fukuzawa  occupied  himself 
with  the  foundation  and  supervision  of  a  school,  which  became 
famous  throughout  the  land  under  the  name  of  Keio  Gijiku, — 
a  school  in  both  senses  of  the  word,  as  an  educational  institution 
and  as  a  centre  of  intellectual  and  social  influence.  On  this 
school  his  mind  impressed  itself  so  powerfully  during  a  period 
of  over  thirty  years,  his  revolutionary  views  and  methods  so 
closely  suited  the  needs  of  a  rising  generation  which  had  broken 
with  its  entire  past,  the  numbers  who  flocked  to  learn  of  him 
were  consequently  so  great  and  so  easily  moulded,  that  it  is  no 
exaggeration  to  call  Fukuzawa  the  intellectual  father  of  more 
than  half  the  men  who  now  direct  the  affairs  of  the  country. 
Therein  lies  the  importance  of  his  life-work ;  for  though  locally 
lauded  as  a  thinker,  Fukuzawa  was  far  more  of  a  worker.  Like 
the  French  encyclopaedists,  he  laboured  for  universal  enlighten- 
ment and  for  social  reform.  His  "  philosophy  "  was  not  original, 
and  amounted  at  best  to  little  more  than  an  amiable  optimism 
of  a  utilitarian  cast.  But  such  as  it  was,  the  leading  minds 
among  his  countrymen  have  adopted  it. 

Fukuzawa's  success  as  an  author  was  phenomenal.  His  separate 
works,  as  usually  enumerated,  amount  to  50,  making  105  vol- 
umes, of  which,  between  i860  and  1893,  no  less  than  3,500,000 
copies,  or  7,490,000  volumes,  had    been  issued    from    the   press. 


368  Pidgin- Japanese. 

But  some  of  his  best-known  productions  are  omitted  from  this 
count,  because  posterior  to  the  year  1893.  Such  are  the  Auto* 
biography*  already  cited,  of  which  seventeen  editions  have  already 
appeared,  the  Hundred  Essays  t\  of  which  there  have  been  no 
less  than  thirty-four  editions,  and  three  or  four  others.  Indeed,  so 
voluminous  were  his  writings  that  he  early  found  it  advantageous 
to  keep  a  printing-office  for  his  own  use.  Two  causes  united 
to  bring  about  this  result.  One  was  the  (to  a  Japanese  public) 
novelty  and  interest  of  the  subjects  treated  ;  the  other  was  an 
exceptionally  lucid  style.  Fukuzawa  tells  us  himself,  in  the 
Introduction  to  his  collected  works,  that  his  constant  endeavour 
had  been  to  write  so  clearly  that  "not  only  every  uneducated 
tradesman  or  peasant  should  understand  him  perfectly,  but  that 
even  a  servant-girl  fresh  from  the  country,  chancing  to  hear  a 
passage  read  aloud  by  some  one  on  the  other  side  of  a  screen, 
should  carry  away  a  good  general  notion  of  the  sense."  And  he 
adds  that  he  had  been  in  the  habit  of  submitting  his  writings  to 
the  test  of  comprehension  by  a  neighbouring  poor  woman  and 
her  children,  and  of  simplifying  every  expression  at  which  they 
stumbled.  Little  wonder  that  an  author  so  truly  democratic 
should  have  achieved  an  unequalled  popularity. 

if  if  if  if  if  if  if  if  if 

Perhaps  the  reader  may  object  that  these  pages,  though  labelled 
"  Philosophy,"  have  little  or  nothing  about  philosophy  in  them. 
We  would  remind  him  that  we  set  out  by  hinting  that,  although 
the  word  "philosophy"  may  be  found  in  Japanese  dictionaries, 
the  thing  itself  is  scarcely  Japanese.  If  we  ask  him,  therefore, 
to  put  up  with  a  makeshift,  that  is  no  more  than  what  the 
Japanese  themselves  have  habitually  done. 

Pidgin- Japanese.  In  China,  where  the  native  language  is 
very    difficult    to   pick  up,    and    the    natives    themselves    have    a 

*  Fukuo  Jiden. 

t  Fukuo  Hyaku-wa. 


Pilgrimages.  369 

decided  talent  for  learning  foreign  tongues,  the  speech  of  the 
most  numerous  body  of  foreigners — the  English — has  come  to  be 
the  medium  of  intercourse.  It  is  not  pure  English,  but  English 
in  that  modified  form  known  as  "  Pidgin-English."*  In  Japan, 
where  the  conditions  are  reversed,  we  have  "  Pidgin-Japanese " 
as  the  patois  in  which  new-comers  soon  learn  to  make  known 
their  wants  to  coolies  and  tea-house  girls,  and  which  serves  even 
as  the  vehicle  for  grave  commercial  transactions  at  the  open  ports. 
A  Yokohama  resident  of  old  days,  Mr.  Hoffman  Atkinson,  made 
up  a  most  entertaining  little  book  on  this  subject,  entitling 
it  Exercises  in  the  Yokohama  Dialect;  but  its  humour  cannot 
be  fully  appreciated  except  by  those  to  whom  real  Japanese  is 
familiar. 

In  the  dialect  under  consideration,  a  "lawyer"  is  called 
consul-bobbery-shlo,  a  "  dentist "  is  ha-daikusan  (literally  "  tooth 
carpenter"),  a  "lighthouse"  is  fime-kaiken-sarampan-nai-rosoku,  a 
"marine  insurance  surveyor"  is  sarampan-fune-haiken-danna-san, 
and  so  on. 


Pilgrimages.  The  reputation  of  most  Japanese  shrines  is 
bounded  by  a  somewhat  narrow  horizon.  The  Yedo  folk — the 
Eastern  Japanese — make  pilgrimages  to  Narita,  and  up  Fuji  and 
Oyama.  Devout  natives  of  the  central  provinces  round  Kyoto 
repair  to  the  great  monastery  of  Koya-san,  or  perform  what  is 
termed  the  "tour  of  the  holy  places  of  Yamato"  {Yamaio-meguri), 
including  such  celebrated  temples  as  Miwa,  Hase,  and  Tonomine  ; 
and  they  also  constitute  the  majority  of  the  pilgrims  to  the  shrine 
of  the  Sun-Goddess  in  Ise.  The  religious  centre  of  Shikoku  is 
a  place  called  Kompira  or  Kotohira ;  in  the  North  that  rank 
belongs  to  the  sacred  island  of  Kinkwa-zan,  while  the  Inland  Sea 
has  another  sacred  and  most  lovely  island — Miyajima — where 
none  are  ever  allowed  either  to  be  born  or  to  be  buried,  and 
where  the  tame  deer,  protected  by  a  gentle  piety,  come  and  feed 

*  "Pidgin"  is  believed  to  be  a  corruption  of  the  word  "business." 


370  Pilgrimages. 

out  of  the  stranger's  hand.  But  some  of  the  greatest  shrines 
have  branches  in  other  provinces.  Kompira  has  a  branch  in  most 
Japanese  cities ;  the  great  Kyoto  temple  of  the  fox-deity  Inari 
has  a  branch  in  almost  every  village.  Again  there  are  shrines 
whose  very  nature  is  multiple.  Such,  for  instance,  are  the  Thirty- 
three  Holy  Places  of  Kwannon,  the  Goddess  of  Mercy. 

Pilgrimages  are  generally  of  a  social  nature.  There  exist 
innumerable  pious  associations  called  kb  or  kojii,  whose  members 
contribute  each  a  cent  or  two  a  month,  and  then,  when  the  proper 
time  of  year  comes  round,  a  certain  number  of  persons  are  chosen 
by  lot  to  represent  the  rest  at  the  shrine  of  their  devotion,  all 
expenses  being  defrayed  out  of  the  common  fund.  When  these 
representatives  form  a  considerable  band,  one  of  them,  who  has 
made  the  pilgrimage  before,  acts  as  leader  and  cicerone,  recounting 
to  his  gaping  audience  the  legend  of  each  minor  shrine  that  is 
passed  on  the  way,  and  otherwise  assisting  and  controlling  the 
brethren.  The  inns  to  be  put  up  at  on  the  road  are  mostly  fixed 
by  custom,  a  flag  or  wooden  board  inscribed  with  the  name  of 
the  pilgrim  association  being  hung  up  over  the  entrance.  Inns 
are  proud  to  display  many  such  authentic  signs  of  constant 
patronage,  and  visitors  to  Japan  will  often  notice  establishments 
whose  whole  front  is  thus  adorned.  As  a  general  rule,  the  pilgrims 
wear  no  special  garb ;  but  those  bound  for  Fuji,  Ontake,  or  other 
high  mountains,  may  be  distinguished  by  their  white  clothes  and 
very  broad  and  sloping  straw  hats.  While  making  the  ascent,  they 
often  ring  a  bell  and  chant  an  invocation  which,  being  interpreted, 
signifies,  "May  our  six  senses  be  pure,  and  the  weather  on  the 
honourable  mountain  be  fair."* 

The  Japanese,  as  has  been  often  remarked,  take  their  religion 
lightly.  Ise  and  other  favourite  goals  of  piety  are  equally  noted 
for  the  distractions  which  they  provide  of  an  evening.  Nor  is 
much  enquiry  made  into  the  doctrines  held  at  any  special  shrine. 

*  Rokkon  S/tvjo,  O  Yama  Kaisei.  The  six  senses,  according  to  the  Buddhists,  are 
the  eyes,  ears,  nose,  tongue,  body,  and  heart.  The  pilgrims  repeat  the  invocation,  for 
the  most  part,  without  understanding  it,  as  most  of  the  words  are  Chinese. 


Pilgrimages.  371 

Kompira  was  Buddhist  and  is  now  Shinto,  having  been  made 
so  by  order  of  government  during  the  present  reign.  But  the 
pilgrims  flock  there  all  the  same,  the  sanctity  of  the  name  of 
the  shrine  overbalancing  any  lapses  in  the  theology  of  the  priests. 
Nor  need  this  be  matter  for  wonderment,  seeing  that  the  pilgrim 
ranks  are  recruited  almost  exclusively  from  the  peasant  and 
artisan  classes,  whose  members  scarcely  realise  that  Buddhism 
and  Shinto  are  two  separate  cults,  and  are  prepared  to  pay  equal 
respect  to  all  the  superhuman  powers  that  be.  When  tradesmen 
of  any  standing  join  a  pilgrim  association,  they  mostly  do  so 
in  order  to  extend  their  business  connection,  and  to  see  new 
places  cheaply  and  sociably. 

People  who  remember  the  "good  old  times,"  assert  that 
pilgrimages  are  on  the  wane.  Probably  this  is  true.  The  in- 
fluence of  religion  has  been  weakened  by  the  infiltration  of  Western 
ideas  of  "  progress  "  and  material  civilisation.  Then,  too,  taxation 
weighs  far  more  heavily  than  of  yore,  so  that  there  is  less  money 
to  spend  on  non-essentials.  Still  many  thousands  of  persons, 
mostly  pilgrims,  annually  ascend  Fuji ;  over  8,000  pilgrims  went 
up  Nantai-zan  this  summer,  and  the  concourse  of  worshippers 
at  the  temple  of  Ikegami  near  Tokyo  is  so  great  that  on  the  last 
annual  festival  for  which  we  have  statistics,  over  51,000  persons 
passed  through  the  wicket  at  the  suburban  railway  station,  where 
the  daily  average  is  only  some  2,000.  Many,  doubtless,  were 
mere  holiday-makers,  and  the  scene  in  the  grounds  was  that 
of  a  great  holiday-making.  The  happy  crowds  trot  off  to  amuse 
themselves,  and  just  do  a  little  bit  of  praying  incidentally, — give 
a  tap  at  the  gong,  and  fling  a  copper  into  the  box, — so  as  to 
be  sure  of  being  on  the  right  side.  They  are  ten  thousand  miles 
away  from  Benares,  and  from  Mecca,  and  from  the  Scotch  Kirk. 

The  holy  objects  which  Japanese  pilgims  go  out  for  to  see 
and  to  bow  down  before,  belong  exactly  to  the  same  category 
as  the  holy  objects  of  Christian  devotion,  modified  only  by  local 
colouring.  Minute  fragments  of  the  cremated  body  of  a  Buddha 
(these   are   called    shari),    footprints    of  a    Buddha,     images    and 


$72  Pipes. 

pictures  by  famous  ancient  saints,  such  as  the  Abbot  Kobo 
Daishi  and  Prince  Shotoku  Taishi,  whose  activity  in  this  direc- 
tion was  phenomenal  if  legend  can  at  all  be  trusted, — holy  swords, 
holy  garments,  wells  that  never  run  dry,  statues  so  lifelike 
that  when  struck  by  an  impious  hand,  blood  has  been  known 
to  flow  from  the  wound, — these  things  and  things  like  these  are 
what  will  be  brought  to  the  notice  of  the  traveller  curious  to  pry 
into  the  arcana  of  Japanese  piety. 

Book  recommended.     Occult  Japan,  by  Percival  Lowell. 

Pipes.  The  diminutive  pipes  of  modern  Japan  are  but  one 
among  the  innumerable  instances  of  the  tendency  of  Japanese 
taste  towards  small  things.  To  judge  from  the  old  pictures  that 
have  been  preserved,  the  first  Japanese  pipes  must  have  been 
as  large  as  walking-sticks,  whereas  those  now  used  give  a  man 
but  three  whiffs.  After  the  third  whiff,  the  wee  pellet  of  ignited 
tobacco  becomes  a  fiery  ball,  loose,  and  ready  to  leap  from  the 
pipe  at  a  breath ;  and  wherever  it  falls,  it  pierces  holes  like  a 
red-hot  shot.  But  the  expert  Japanese  smoker  rarely  thus  disgraces 
himself.  He  at  once  empties  the  contents  of  the  mouthpiece 
into  a  section  of  bamboo  (hai-fuki)  which  is  kept  for  the  purpose, 
somewhat  after  the  fashion  of  a  spittoon.  Not  so  the  foreigner 
ambitious  of  Japonising  himself.  He  begins  his  new  smoking 
career  by  burning  small  round  holes  in  everything  near  him, — the 
mats,  the  cushions,  and  especially  his  own  clothes. 

The  pipe  may  be  made  either  of  metal  only,  or  of  bamboo 
with  metal  at  either  end, — the  bowl  and  the  mouthpiece.  The 
metal  commonly  employed  is  brass,  but  silver  is  more  fashion- 
able ;  and  as  massive  silver  would  be  inconveniently  heavy,  the 
plan  followed  is  to  engrave  and  inlay  it  elaborately,  thereby 
both  lightening  the  article  and  beautifying  it.  A  really  fine  pipe 
may  cost  as  much  as  thirty  yen,  and  will  be  handed  down  as 
an  heirloom.  A  friend  of  the  present  writer  has  collected  over 
a  hundred  sorts,  ranging  from  such  artistic  triumphs  down  to 
the    five   sen    pipe    of  the    navvy    or    the    navvy's   wife, — for    in 


Pipes.  373 

smoking,  if  in  nothing  else,  Japanese  manners  sanction  complete 
equality  between  the  sexes. 

Around  the  pipe  as  an  evolutionary  centre,  a  whole  intricate 
and  elegant  little  world  of  smoking  furniture  and  smoking 
etiquette  has  come  into  existence.  There  is  the  labako-ire,  or 
tobacco-pouch, — as  far  removed  in  its  dainty  beauty  from  the 
cheap  gutta-percha  atrocities  of  Europe  as  a  butterfly  is  from 
a  blunderbuss, — the  netsuke,  or  carved  button,  used  to  attach 
the  pouch  to  the  owner's  girdle,  and  above  all  the  tabako- 
bon,  or  smoking-box,  which  contains  a  brazier  and  other  imple- 
ments. In  aristocratic  houses  the  smoking-box  is  sometimes 
lacquered,  and  the  brazier  is  of  plated  or  solid  silver.  A  specially 
light  and  graceful  kind  is  that  invented  for  use  in  theatres,  and 
arranged  so  as  to  be  easily  carried  in  the  hand.  The  smoker 
before  whom,  on  a  winter's  day,  is  placed — let  us  say — a  hand- 
some bronze  brazier  to  warm  his  hands  and  light  his  pipe  at, 
must  not  empty  the  pipe  into  it  by  knocking  the  metal  head 
upon  the  rim.  He  must  insert  the  leather  flap  of  his  tobacco- 
pouch  between  the  pipe  head  and  the  brazier,  so  as  to 
prevent  the  tapping  of  the  former  from  making  a  dent  in  the 
bronze.  The  introduction  of  European  costume  among  the 
upper  classes  has  entailed  certain  modifications  in  the  smoking 
paraphernalia.  The  tobacco-pouch  has  been  reshaped  so  as  to 
accommodate  itself  to  a  breast  or  side-pocket,  and  the  little  pipe 
itself  has  been  shortened  so  as  to  be  enclosed  in  the  pouch,  much 
as  a  pencil  is  enclosed  in  a  pocket-book.  The  old  plan  was  for 
the  pipe  to  be  carried  at  the  girdle  in  a  case  of  its  own.  These 
innovations  have  happily  not,  as  in  so  many  other  cases,  been 
attended  with  loss  of  beauty.  On  the  contrary,  charmingly 
designed  articles  have  sprung  into  existence,  and  are  all  the 
more  interesting  for  their  novelty. 

To  clean  a  Japanese  pipe  is  an  art  in  itself.  One  plan  is  to 
heat  the  pipe  head  in  the  charcoal  of  the  brazier,  and  then  blow 
out  the  refuse ;  but  this  method  corrodes  the  metal  of  a  fine  pipe. 
Such  must  be  cleaned  by  means  of  a  twist  (koyori)  of  fine,  tough 


374  Poetry. 

paper,  which  is  passed  up  the  stem  and  pulled  out  through  the 
head,  the  operation  being  repeated  until  all  the  nicotine  has 
been  removed.  An  industry  worth  mentioning  in  this  connection 
is  that  of  workmen  who  replace  worn-out  bamboo  pipe-stems  by 
new  ones  of  any  desired  length.  The  stems  are  now  often 
beautifully  speckled  in  imitation  of  tortoise-shell,  porcupine 
quills,  and  other  things. 

.  Must  it  be  revealed,  in  conclusion,  that  in  vulgar  circles  the 
pipe,  besides  its  legitimate  use,  occasionally  serves  as  a  domestic 
rod  ?  The  child,  or  possibly  the  daughter-in-law,  who  has  given 
cause  for  anger  to  that  redoubtable  empress,  the  Obasan,  or 
"Granny,"  before  whom  the  whole  household  trembles,  may 
receive  a  severe  blow  from  the  metal-tipped  pipe,  or  even  a 
whole  volley  of  blows,  after  which  the  old  lady  resumes  her 
smoke.     (See  also  Article  on  Tobacco.) 

Poetry.  Japanese  prosody,  though  exceptionally  simple,  has 
interest  in  the  eyes  of  specialists,  because  it  is  one  of  the  few 
indisputably  original  productions  of  the  Japanese  mind.  There 
is  no  rhyme,  no  weighing  of  syllables,  as  in  China  and  other 
lands  further  to  the  west.  Ail  syllables  count  alike.  The  rule  is 
that  lines  of  5  syllables  and  7  syllables  must  alternate.  Besides 
this,  there  must  be  an  additional  line  of  7  syllables  at  the  end. 
That  is  all.  "Stanzas,"  "cantos,"  etc.,  are  things  entirely  un- 
known.    Thus,    Japanese    poems   assume  the  following  shape : — 

5,  7,  5,  7,  5,  7, 7.    Some    poems   may  run  into  as  many  as 

fifty  or  a  hundred  lines,  say,  a  page  or  two  of  this  book.  Such 
are  styled  Naga-u/a,  literally  "long  poems,"  though  they  would 
be  deemed  short  in  other  literatures.  But  the  overwhelming 
majority  are  tiny  odes  {Tankd)  of  no  more  than  five  lines  each, 
of  the  shape  5,  7,  5,  7,  7,  making  but  thirty-one  syllables  all 
told.  The  first  three  lines  of  such  an  ode,  is  called  the  kami  no 
ku,  or  "  upper  hemistich ; "  the  second  is  the  shimo  no  ku,  or 
"lower  hemistich."  A  slight  pause  is  always  made  between  the 
two  in  reciting.     Thus  : 


Poetry.  375 

(5)  Hototogisu 

(7)  Nakitsurn  kata  rvo 

(5)  Naoamureba — 

(7)  Tada  ari-ake  no 

(7)  Tsuki  zo  nokorcrii* 

that  is,  literally  rendered, 

"  When  I  gaze  towards  the  place  where  the  cuckoo  has  been 
singing,  nought  remains  but  the  moon  in  the  early  dawn." — Such 
is  the  narrow  circle  within  which  the  poets  of  Japan  have  elected 
to  move. 

The  favourite  subjects  of  the  Japanese  muse  are  the  flowers, 
the  birds,  the  snow,  the  moon,  the  falling  leaves  in  autumn,  the 
mist  on  the  mountains, — in  fact,  the  outward  aspect  of  nature, — 
love  of  course,  and  the  shortness  of  human  life.  Many  of  our 
Western  commonplaces  are  conspicuously  absent :  no  Japanese 
poet  has  expatiated  on  the  beauties  of  sunset  or  starlight,  or  has 
penned  sonnets  to  his  mistress's  eyebrows,  or  even  so  much  as 
alluded  to  her  eyes  ;  much  less  would  he  be  so  improper  as  to 
hint  at  kissing  her.  Japanese  poetry  has  commonplaces  of  its 
own,  however ;  and  rules  from  which  there  is  no  appeal  prescribe 
the  manner  in  which  each  subject  is  to  be  treated.  One  rule 
of  general  application  in  the  odes  forbids  the  employment  of 
Chinese  words, — a  circumstance  which  narrowly  limits  the  range  of 
thought  and  expression,  seeing  that  more  than  half  the  words  in 
the  language,  and  nearly  all  those  denoting  abstractions  and 
delicate  shades  of  meaning,  are  of  Chinese  origin. 

Many  Japanese  odes  are  mere  exclamations, — words  outlining 
a  picture  for  the  imagination,  not  making  any  assertion  for  the 
logical  intellect.  Take,  for  instance,  the  following,  written  by 
an  anonymous  poet  a  thousand  years  ago  : 

*  Some  critic,  very  learned  in  everything  but  Japanese,  will  perhaps  say  that  the 
first  and  fifth,  and  the  second  and  fourth  lines  of  this  little  poem  do  rhyme  together, 
after  all.  We  would  remind  him  that  rhyme  is  the  intentional  likeness  of  sound,  not 
an  accidental  likeness,  and  that  such  accidental  concurrences  are  not  to  be  prevented 
in  a  language  which,  like  Japanese,  has  but  six  finals,  namely,  the  five  vowels,  a,  e,  i, 
o,  u,  and  the  consonant  n.  No  rhyme  is  perceived  in  any  such  cases  by  the  Japanese 
themselves,  nor  is  it  easy  at  first  to  get  them  to  appreciate  our  European  rhymes,  or 
even  to  hear  them. 


376  Poetry. 

Shira-kumo  ni 

Heine  uchi-kaxvashi 
Tobu  kari  no — 

Kazu  sae  miyuru 

Aki  no  yo  no  tsuki  ! 

that  is, 

"The  moon  on  an  autumn  night  making  visible  the  very 
number  of  the  wild-geese  that  fly  past  with  wings  intercrossed 
in  the  white  clouds." — Such  a  manner  of  expression  may  seem 
strange  at  first,  but  its  charm  grows  upon  one. 

With  the  doubtful  exception  of  the  No,  or  classical  dramas, 
all  the  genuine  poetry  of  Japan  is  lyrical.  The  Japanese  have 
also  burlesque  or  comic  stanzas.  Even  their  serious  poetry 
admits  of  a  curious  species  of  pun,  named  "  pivot,"  in  which 
the  first  part  of  the  sentence  has  no  logical  end,  the  second  part  no 
logical  beginning ;  and  also  of  "  pillow- words," — terms  which, 
often  devoid  of  meaning  themselves,  serve  as  props  for  other 
significant  words  to  rest  on,  somewhat  after  the  fashion  of  the 
stock  epithets  in  Homer.  Acrostics,  anagrams,  and  palindromes 
are  well-known  to  the  Japanese,  all  such  conceits  having  come  in 
early  in  the  Middle  Ages.  The  introduction  of  the  poetical 
tournaments  known  as  Uta-awase,  which  originated  in  China  about 
A.D.  760,  may  be  traced  to  the  end  of  the  ninth  century.  It 
was  then  that  the  custom  grew  up  of  setting  themes  on  which 
thirty-one  syllable  odes  were  written  to  order  on  the  spot, — a 
custom  which  has  lasted  ever  since,  and  has  done  more  than 
ought  else  to  conventionalise  Japanese  poetry  alike  in  subject- 
matter  and  in  treatment,  and  to  degrade  it  into  a  mere  exercise 
of  ingenuity.  The  poets  of  an  elder  day  had  given  expression 
to  the  genuine  feelings  evoked  from  time  to  time  by  their 
individual  experience.  Henceforth  this  was  rarely  to  be  the  case. 
The  narrow  bounds  of  the  thirty-one  syllable  form  contributed 
towards  the  same  undesirable  end.  It  contributed  doubly, — on 
the  one  hand  by  enabling  almost  anybody  to  say  something  in 
verse,  on  the  other  by  making  it  well-nigh  impossible  for  even 
the  truest  poet  to  say  anything  of  value.     But  the  limit  of  the  little 


Poetry.  377 

was  not  yet  reached.  A  favourite  game  at  these  tournaments, 
called  Renga,  wherein  one  person  composes  the  second  hemistich 
of  a  verse  and  another  person  has  to  provide  it  with  a  first  hemi- 
stich, seems  to  date  from  the  eleventh  century.  Out  of  this,  at  a 
later  date,  by  the  dropping  of  the  second  hemistich,  grew  the 
Haikai  or  Hokku,  an  ultra-Lilliputian  class  of  poem  having  but 
seventeen  syllables  (5,  7,  5).       Here   are  a  couple  of  specimens  : 

Rakkzva  eda  ni  )       "What    I   saw    as    a   fallen    blossom 

Kaeru  to  mireba        >  returning  to  the  branch,  lo !    it  was  a 
Kochd  kana  /*  )  butterfly." 

Yttdacfa  ya  1       «^  shower,  and  head-gear  variously 

Line  sama-zama  no  \  .  . 

Kaburi-mono  \  ingenious, 

this  latter  a  vignette  of  the  scattering  caused  by  an  unexpected 
shower,  when  one,  maybe,  will  hold  up  a  fan,  another  don  a 
kerchief,  etc.,  to  get  as  little  wet  as  possible. — Millions  of  these 
tiny  dashes  of  colour  or  humour  have  been  considered  worthy  of 
preservation.  In  fact,  the  votaries  of  the  Hokku  claim,  not  without 
justice,  that,  though  but  half  the  length  of  the  classic  ode,  it  is 
wider  in  scope,  as  no  theme  however  unconventional  is  excluded 
by  its  rules,  neither  does  it  lay  half  the  dictionary  under  a  ban. 

The  nearest  European  parallel  to  the  Japanese  poems  of  thirty- 
one  or  seventeen  syllables  is  the  epigram,  using  that  term  in  its 
earlier  sense.  Or  we  might  say  of  the  seventeen-syllable  poems 
in  particular,  that  they  correspond  to  such  prominent  half-stanzas  as 

"  The  linnet  born  within  the  cage, 
That  never  knew  the  summer  woods," 

or 

"  And  Autumn  laying  here  and  there 
A  fiery  finger  on  the  leaves," 

which,  in  the  hands  of  our  poets,  are  evolved  as  parts  of  members 
of  a  complex  organic  whole,  but  would  in  Japanese  literature 
each  stand  alone  as  an  independent  composition.     Naturally  the 


*  This  line  may  seem  to  have  but  four  syllables.     There  are,  however,  five  in  writing, 
and  even  to  a  Japanese  ear  in  pronunciation,  as  the  long  syllable  did  counts  double. 


378  Poetry. 

brevity  needed  to  put  any  statement  into  so  narrow  a  compass 
soon  led  to  an  elliptical  and  enigmatic  style,  which  continually 
crosses  the  border-line  of  obscurity. 

The  twin  stars  of  early  Japanese  poetry  are  Hitomaro  and 
Akahito,  both  of  whom  loved  and  sang  during  the  opening  years 
of  the  eighth  century.  Perhaps  the  most  illustrious  next  to 
them — illustrious  not  only  in  verse,  but  in  prose — is  Tsurayuki, 
a  great  noble  of  about  the  year  930,  after  which  time  the  decline 
of  Japanese  poetry  set  in.  There  are  many  other  well-known 
poets,  and  also  poetesses.  But  the  Japanese  consider  poetry  more 
as  the  production  of  an  epoch  than  of  an  individual.  They  do 
not,  as  a  rule,  publish  separately  the  works  of  any  single  author, 
as  we  publish  Chaucer,  Spenser,  and  the  rest.  They  publish 
anthologies  of  all  the  poetical  works  of  an  era.  The  Man-ybshu, 
or  "Collection  of  a  Myriad  Leaves,"  was  the  first  of  these  an- 
thologies, and  is  therefore  the  most  highly  prized.  It  was  compiled 
in  the  eighth  century.  The  moderns  have  devoted  a  whole 
mountain  of  commentary  to  the  elucidation  of  its  obscurities. 
The  Kokinshu,  or  "Songs  Ancient  and  Modern,"'  collected  by 
Tsurayuki  and  including  many  of  his  own  compositions,  dates 
from  the  tenth  century,  a  period  whose  style  has  remained  the 
model  which  every  later  poet  has  striven  to  imitate.  Other 
collections — all  made  by  Imperial  order — followed  in  the  eleventh, 
twelfth,  thirteenth,  fourteenth,  and  fifteenth  centuries.  These, 
together  with  the  "  Songs  Ancient  and  Modern,"  are  known  under 
the  general  name  of  the  "  Anthologies  of  the  One-and-Twenty 
Reigns  "  (Ni-jii-ichi  Dai  Shii).  A  much  shorter  collection,  the 
Hyaku-nin  Is-shu,  or  "  Hundred  Odes  by  a  Hundred  Poets," 
brought  together  by  Teika  Kyo,  a  nobleman  of  the  thirteenth  cen- 
tury, has  long  enjoyed  exceptional  favour  with  the  public  at  large, 
—so  much  so  that  every  one  having  a  tincture  of  education  knows 
it  by  heart;  but  the  native  critics  justly  refuse  to  endorse  this 
superficial  popular  verdict.  The  acknowledged  king  of  the  seven- 
teen-syllable  style  is  Basho,  who  flourished  at  the  end  of  the 
seventeenth  century,  and  left  ten  principal  followers,  the  so-called 


Poetry. 


379 


"Ten  Wits,"  who  flourished  early  in  the  eighteenth,  and  in  their 
turn  left  imitators  innumerable  down  to  the  present  day. 

Previous  to  the  changes  wrought  by  the  revolution  of  1868,  it 
was  considered  one  of  the  essential  accomplishments  of  a  Japanese 
gentleman  to  be  able  to  write  verses.  This  was  not  so  difficult 
as  might  be  imagined  ;  for  nothing  was  less  honoured  than  origi- 
nality. On  the  contrary,  the  old  ideas  had  to  be  expressed  in 
the  old  words,  over  and  over  again,  plagiarism  being  accounted 
no  crime,  but  rather  a  proof  of  wide  reading  and  a  retentive 
memory.  Japanese  gentlemen  also  composed  Chinese  verses, 
much  as  our  schoolboys  compose  Latin  verses.  A  good  deal  of 
all  this  still  goes  on.  Numbers  of  persons,  both  men  and  women, 
make  their  living  as  teachers  of  the  poetic  art.  Meetings  are 
held,  diplomas  conferred,  and  time  spent  in  elegant  exercises, 
around  which,  as  is  the  Japanese  wont,  a  whole  forest  of  technical 
terms  has  grown  up.  There  lies  before  us  the  programme  for 
1904  of  one  of  these  teachers,  an  accomplished  lady,  whose 
poetry  days  are  the  first  Sunday  of  each  month.  July  and 
August  are  vacation  time.  The  themes  set  for  the  other  months, 
printed  on  neat  little  slips  of  paper  and  circulated  among  her 
friends  and  patronesses,  are  as  follows,  and  may  serve  as  specimens 
of  a  score  of  others  : — 

January.         Snow  in  the  Capital.     The  Pleasures  of  Seclusion. 

February.        A  Traveller  Listening  to  the  Nightingale.    Plum- 
blossoms  in  the  Snow. 

March.  A  Moor  in  Spring.     A  Mountain  Hut  in  Spring. 

April.  Cherry-blossoms  on  a  Dark   Night.      A  Wistaria 

Blossoming  on  a  Ruin. 

May.  Rice-fields  in   Summer.      A   Prospect  of  Villages 

and  Green  Trees. 

June.  Taking  the  Air  at  Eve. 

September.      The    Moon    upon   the 
Rain. 

October.  A   River  in  Autumn. 

Clouds. 


Clouds  on  the  Mountains. 
Waters.       Coolness    after 

Wild-geese  Traversing   the 


380  Poetry. 

November.      The  Deer  at  Eve.       Maple-leaves  Stained  by    the 
First  Hoarfrost. 

December.      Winter  Flowers.     Distant  Mountains  Seen  through 
the  Leafless  Trees. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  the  themes  are  in  most  cases  appro- 
priate to  the  month  to  which  they  are  allotted, — a  consideration 
made  clearer  still  by  reference  to  Japanese  literary  conventions. 
For  instance,  an  uncultured  European  may  suppose  that  the 
moon  belongs  equally  to  every  season.  He  is  wrong  :  the  moon 
is  the  special  property  of  autumn,  and  the  still  more  private 
and  particular  property  of  September.  You  ask,  why  ?  That 
only  shows  your  want  of  education.  Educated  persons  accept 
all  such  literary  dicta  without  question.  European  notions  may 
be  all  very  well  in  such  matters  as  railways,  and  drainage,  and 
steam-boilers,  and  things  of  that  sort ;  but  when  it  comes  to 
poetry,  the  Japanese  cry  halt,  for  this  is  sacred  ground.  There 
are,  no  doubt,  some  heretics  in  these  latter  days : — one  pro- 
gramme shown  to  us  proposes  such  themes  as  "  A  Torpedo-boat," 
"The  Yearly  House-cleaning/'  "Lucifer  Matches."  (!)  A  few 
men  have  even  endeavoured  to  lead  Japanese  poetry  into 
completely  new  paths, — to  introduce  rhyme,  with  stanzas  formed 
on  the  English  model,  etc.  ;  but  such  innovators  have  scant 
following. — To  return  to  orthodoxy.  The  Palace  itself,  con- 
servative in  most  things  non-political,  offers  to  the  nation  an 
example  of  fidelity  to  the  national  traditions  in  matters  relating  to 
poetry.  The  Imperial  family  has  its  teachers  of  the  art.  The 
Emperor's  passion  for  poetry  is  such  that  he  devotes  a  portion 
of  every  evening  to  the  writing  of  verse,  and  during  the  nine 
years  from  1893  to  1901  composed  no  fewer  than  27,000  odes  in 
the  thirty-one  syllable  style.  Once  a  year  too,  in  January,  a 
theme  is  set,  on  which  the  Emperor,  the  Empress,  and  other  exalted 
personages  compose  each  a  thirty-one  syllable  ode,  and  the  whole 
nation  is  invited  to  compete,  with  the  result  that  many  thousands 
of  verses  are  sent  in,   written    on    thick    paper   of  a  certain   size 


Poetry.  381 

prescribed  by  custom.*  In  January,  1904,  the  theme  was  "A  Pine- 
tree  on  a  Rock."  In  January,  1903,  it  was  "The  Plum-tree  at 
New  Year."  In  other  years  it  was  "  Patriotic  Congratulations," 
"Pine-trees  Reflected  in  the  Water,"  and  so  on,  the  general 
custom  being  to  insinuate  some  delicate  compliment  to  the 
reigning  house,  even  when  the  theme  may  make  that  a  feat 
involving  some  difficult  twisting. 

All  that  has  been  written  above  refers  to  the  poetry  of  the 
educated.  As  for  the  common  people,  they  have  songs  of  their 
own,  which  conform  as  far  as  possible  to  classical  models,  but  are 
much  mixed  with  colloquialisms,  and  are  accordingly  despised 
by  all  well-bred  persons.  The  ditties  sung  by  singing-girls  to 
the  twanging  of  the  guitar  belong  to  this  class.  Perhaps  we 
should  also  mention  the  Wasan,  or  Buddhist  hymns,  which,  sharing 
in  the  general  contempt  poured  by  the  modern  Japanese  spirit 
on  all  things  Buddhistic,  yet  retain  considerable  influence  over 
the  uninstructed  classes.  The  Rev.  Arthur  Lloyd,  who  has  made 
a  special  study  of  this  recondite  subject,  informs  us  that  not  a 
few  of  the  hymns  composed  by  a  famous  abbot  of  the  fifteenth 
century,  named  Rennyo  Shonin,  will  bear  comparison  with  the 
productions  of  Christian  hymn-writers.  Many  others  are  simply 
versified  paraphrases  of  sutras. 

One  poor  little  category,  standing  apart  on  the  lowest  plane, 
is  mnemonic  verse.  Its  use  suggested  itself  early  ;  for  there  still 
exists  a  booklet  of  such,  intended  to  teach  the  Chinese  characters, 
which  goes  back  to  the  ninth  century  of  the  Christian  era.  Quite 
recently  a  whole  shower  of  these  charitable  endeavours  to  prompt 
dull  youth  has  fallen  on  the  Tokyo  bookshops.  There  lies  before 
us  a  little  volume  enumerating  in  orthodox  fives  and  sevens  all 
the  thoroughfares  and  sights  of  the  metropolis ;  two  others  give 
the  stations  on  various  lines  of  railway  ;  a  fourth — quite  a  triumph 
of  doggerel — serves  to  impress  on  recalcitrant  memories  the  names 
of  the  ships  forming  the  Imperial    Japanese    navy,    together    with 

*  The  number  in  the  last  year  for  which  we  have  statistics  was  12,357. 


382  Politeness. 

the  speed  and  tonnage  of  >  each.  One  feels  almost  sorry,  on 
glancing  over  it,  that  so  much  industry  should  not  rather  have 
been  devoted  to  something  more  generally  useful, — stone-breaking 
on  the  highways,  for  instance. 

Book  recommended.     A  History  of  Japanese    Literature,   by   W.  G.  Aston. — For 

the  No  or  Lyric  Dramas,  see  Article  "Theatre"  of  the  present  work. 


Politeness  is  universally  allowed  to  be  a  distinguishing 
Japanese  trait.  Personal  intercourse  with  this  people  for  more 
than  thirty  years  has  convinced  the  present  writer  that  it  is  la 
politesse  qui  vient  du  cosur, — something  deeper  than  mere  bows 
and  smiles, — that  it  is  rooted  in  genuine  kindliness,  especially 
among  the  lower  classes. 

The  politeness  of  the  Japanese  being  thus  a  fact  disputed  by 
none, — least  of  all  by  the  writer  of  these  miniature  essays, — there 
may  be  some  interest  in  noting  a  few  items  on  the  negative  side ; 
for  in  some  exceptional  particulars  this  most  courteous  nation 
does  offend  glaringly  against  the  canons  of  courtesy,  as  understood 
in  the  West.  Japanese  will  dog  your  footsteps  in  the  streets. 
They  will  contradict  you  flat.  They  will  answer  in  English  when 
you  have  addressed  them  in  their  own  language.  They  will 
catechise  you  about  your  plans:  "Whither  are  you  going? 
Whence  do  you  come?  What  is  your  business?  Are  you  mar- 
ried ?  If  not,  how  extremely  odd  of  you  !  "  If  you  turn  them  off, 
they  will  interrogate  your  servant,  and  that  to  your  very  face.  At 
other  times,  seeing  that  you  speak  Japanese,  they  will  wag  their 
heads  and  smile  condescendingly,  and  admit  to  each  other  that 
you  are  really  quite  intelligent, — much  as  we  might  do  in  presence 
of  the  learned  pig  or  an  ape  of  somewhat  unusual  attainments. 
But  the  most  fundamental  and  all-pervading  breach  of  courtesy 
(from  the  European  standpoint)  is  displayed  in  the  way  servants 
and  other  inferiors  behave  towards  their  superiors.  You  tell  a 
jinrikisha-man  to  set  you  down,  that  you  may  walk  a  hill.  You 
probably  have  to  do  so  four  times  before  he  obeys  : — he  assumes 
that  you  surely   cannot  mean  it.     You   order  your  cook  to  buy 


Politeness.  383 

mutton.  He  goes  straightway  and  invests  in  beef : — he  knows  beef 
to  be  cheaper,  and  thinks  to  spare  your  pocket.  Disobedience,  in 
fact,  is  the  rule, — not  disobedience  from  malice  prepense,  but  from 
an  ineradicable  assumption  on  the  subordinate's  part  that  he 
can  do  better  for  his  master  than  his  master  can  do  for  himself. 
Sometimes  this  is  true  ;  for  the  native  servant  knows  native  ways 
better  than  his  foreign  master  can  ever  hope  to  do.  Sometimes 
it  is  true,  because  the  native  retainer  has  sharper  wits  than  his 
native  lord.  "  Dull  as  a  Daimyo,"  was  almost  a  proverb  in  old 
feudal  days.  But  in  any  case,  what  a  novel  state  of  things  does 
this  open  out  to  the  minds  of  us  Europeans,  to  whom  obedience 
is  the  first  rule  of  courtesy,  abstention  from  inquisitiveness  the 
second  !  The  visitor  to  Japan  is  advised  to  accommodate  him- 
self, once  for  all,  to  local  conditions  in  this  as  in  other  matters. 
He  cannot  possibly  change  them,  and  he  will  spare  himself  much 
loss  of  temper,  and  at  the  same  time  will  preserve  his  dignity  in 
Japanese  eyes,  by  frankly  accepting  the  situation.  He  should 
read  over,  in  this  connection,  what  we  have  already  mentioned  on 
pages  134-5  and  356  concerning  the  comparative  social  equality 
of  all  ranks  and  stations  in  this  country.  He  will  then  begin  to 
realise  a  truth  which  the  existence  of  an  almost  absolute  govern- 
ment and  of  an  elaborate  code  of  manners  at  first  tends  to  conceal, 
namely,  that  the  Japanese  and  Far-Easterns  generally  are  at  bottom 
more  democratic  than  Anglo-Saxons  on  either  side  of  the  Atlantic. 
They  are  more  polite,  yes,  on  the  whole ;  and  we,  for  our  part, 
admire  the  way  in  which  they  manage  to  unite  independence 
with  courtesy.  But  their  courtesy  does  not  go  the  length  of  dis- 
carding their  methods  in  favour  of  those  of  a  social  superior, 
neither  does  it  go  the  length  of  leaving  him  his  freedom,  neither 
does  it  take  into  consideration  that  abstract  multiple  being  whom 
we  call  "  the  public,"  nor  again  does  it  specially  display  itself 
towards  women.  This  may  be  one  reason,  among  several,  why 
ladies  are  apt  to  view  Japan  less  favourably  than  do  travellers 
of  the  male  sex. 

The  habit   which  Japanese   subordinates    have   of  thinking  for 


384  Polo. 

themselves,  and  more  particularly  of  esteeming  themselves  ever 
so  much  smarter  than  their  employers,  leads  to  various  small 
mishaps.  While  we  are  penning  these  pages,  an  instance 
occurs,  which  may  be  quoted  because  typical  of  a  thousand.  A 
friend  staying  with  us  in  the  country  (we  will  call  him  Smith 
Senior  for  short)  had  sent  a  registered  letter  to  his  son,  Smith 
Junior,  in  Tokyo.  Does  the  postman  deliver  it  ?  Not  he  : — he 
does  nothing  so  commonplace.  Instead  of  delivering  it,  he 
unfolds  his  great  mind  and  thinks.  He  remembers  that  various 
letters  for  Smith  Senior  have  recently  passed  through  his  hands 
re-directed  to  the  country  :- — ergo  this  particular  letter  must  be 
re-directed  to  the  country,  and  so  to  Smith  Senior  it  returns  after 
many  days.  The  consequence  is  that  Smith  Junior  is  kept  waiting 
for  his  monthly  allowance,  probably  in  no  very  filial  frame  of 
mind.  This  sort  of  thing  it  is  that  has  given  rise  to  a  bitter  re- 
mark current  among  the  foreign  residents.  "  The  Japanese,"  they 
aver,  "  never  think  ;  and  when  they  do,  they  think  wrong." 

Polo.  The  game  of  polo,  which  is  believed  by  the  best 
European  authorities  to  have  originated  in  Persia,  was  introduced 
into  Japan  from  China  in  the  sixth  or  seventh  century  after  Christ. 
It  is  known  here  by  the  Chinese  name  of  da-kyii  ^r  ^^  literally, 
"striking  balls."  A  Japanese  poet  of  the  early  part  of  the  eighth 
century  mentions  polo  as  being  then  a  favourite  pastime  at 
Court.  It  still  remains  essentially  aristocratic,  as  a  game  played 
on  horseback  and  entailing  considerable  apparatus  and  expense 
can  scarcely  fail  to  do. 

The  Japanese  polo  club,  or  rather  racket,  weighs  a  trifle  under 
2  ounces.  It  has  a  tapering  bamboo  handle  some  3  ft.  6  in. 
in  length,  and  of  about  ^  in.  diameter  at  the  thick  end.  To 
the  thin  end  is  spliced,  with  silk  or  cotton  cord,  a  flat  piece  of 
split  bamboo  ^  in.  in  width,  bent  round  so  as  almost  to  form  a 
frame,  and  kept  in  position  by  a  piece  of  double  cord  fastened 
from  its  extremity  to  the  handle  just  above  the  splicing.  Across 
this  frame  a  light  net  of  silk  or  cotton  cord  is  stretched  sufficiently 


Polo.  385 

loosely  to  avoid  elasticity,  but  not  loosely  enough  to  present 
any  "catch"  in  slinging  the  ball.  The  interior  of  this  scoop  or 
net  measures  4  in.  by  2^  in.  The  balls  are  of  four  kinds, — 
plain  white,  plain  red,  banded  red,  and  banded  white.  They 
measure  i-J  in.  in  diameter,  weigh  about  1^  ounce,  and  are 
formed  of  small  pebbles  wrapped  in  rice  straw  or  bamboo  fibre, 
and  coated  with  several  layers  of  thin  paper  fastened  up  with 
rice  paste. 

The  correct  number  of  players  is  fourteen — seven  a  side — but 
the  game  is  sometimes  played  with  a  greater  and  often  with  a 
less  number.  Each  side  wears  a  distinctive  badge — white  and 
some  colour.  The  players  with  white  badges  play  with  white 
balls,  those  with  coloured  badges  play  with  red  balls. 

The  court  is  a  rectangular  enclosure  railed  in  by  a  stout  bamboo 
post  and  rail  fence  about  4  ft.  high,  except  at  one  end,  where  a 
boarded  fence  or  screen  about  8  ft.  high  replaces  the  post  and 
rail.  In  the  centre  of  this  screen  is  a  circular  hole  about  1  ft. 
6  in.  in  diameter,  behind  which  is  fixed  a  netted  bag  rather 
longer  than  an  ordinary  landing-net.  This  is  the  goal.  ^Eighteen 
ft.  from  this  goal  screen,  another  post  and  rail  about  3  ft.  6  in. 
high  are  fixed  as  a  barrier  right  across  the  enclosure.  Three  ft. 
nearer  the  goal,  a  balk-line  formed  by  a  bamboo  embedded  in 
the  earth  is  fixed  paralled  to  the  barrier  and  goal  fence.  At  the 
other  end  (entrance  end),  another  barrier  forms  a  small  enclosure 
for  attendants  with  balls  and  rackets.  Close  to  this  end  are 
openings  in  the  side  post  and  rails,  allowing  the  players  ingress 
and  egress.  The  space  thus  railed  in  measures  180  ft.  from 
barrier  to  barrier,  60  ft.  from  side  to  side. 

The  players  having  entered  the  enclosure  on  horseback,  each 
provides  himself  with  a  ball  of  similar  colour  to  the  badge  worn 
by  his  side,  the  ball  being  carried  balanced  in  the  net  of  the 
racket.  Each  side  then  forms  in  single  file  at  the  entrance  end 
of  the  enclosure,  so  that  the  two   files    are   parallel   both    to   the 

*  This  distance  is  somewhat  variahle,  being  occasionally  reduced  to  as  little  as  15  ft. 
The  diameter  of  goal  is  then  reduced  with  the  distance  from   r  ft.  6  in.  to  1  ft.  2  in. 


386  Polo. 

borders  of  the  enclosure  and  to  one  another.  The  border  of  the 
enclosure  which  each  side  occupies  is  denoted  by  a  flag  and 
string  of  balls  of  the  colour  proper  to  that  side,  placed  right  and 
left  of  the  goal.  Each  horseman  faces  goal,  but  also  slightly 
turns  his  horse  inwards,  so  as  to  face  somewhat  towards  his 
corresponding  opponent  also.  Each  player  then  raises  his  racket, 
with  the  ball  balanced  on  the  net,  to  a  horizontal  position  across 
his  chest,  breast  high — the  club  being  held  in  the  right  hand — 
and  thus  awaits  the  word  to  start.  This  being  given,  both  sides 
canter  e?i  masse  to  the  "  goal  barrier,"  and  endeavour  to  sling 
their  balls  through  the  "  goal  hole,"  at  the  same  time  obstructing 
foes  and  protecting  friends  as  far  as  possible.  The  object  of  the 
players,  on  both  sides,  during  this  first  stage  of  the  game,  is  to 
score  seven  balls  of  their  respective  colours  as  soon  as  possible. 
Should  a  player  inadvertently  put  a  ball  of  the  opponents'  colour 
into  goal,  it  scores  for  them,  and  against  his  own  side.  The 
duration  of  each  game  being  limited  to  half-an-hour,  scoring 
is  of  more  importance  during  the  first  stage  than  obstructing. 
Consequently  the  play  is  chiefly  confined  to  shooting  at  goal. 
If,  however,  one  side  gains  a  long  lead  at  starting,  it  is  usual 
for  the  other  side  to  station  a  "goal  keeper,"  in  front  of  the 
goal  to  impede  the  shooting  of  the  successful  side.  At  the  entrance 
end  of  the  court,  behind  the  barrier,  are  piles  of  balls  of  both 
colours.  It  is  usual  for  a  player  of  each  side  to  supply  his 
allies  with  ammunition,  by  slinging  up  balls  of  their  colour 
towards  the  goal.  For  during  the  first  stage  of  the  game  the 
number  of  balls  in  play  is  practically  unlimited,  those  only  being 
out  of  play  which  fall  outside  the  enclosure,  or  remain  between 
the  balk-line  and  goal  screen.  It  is  not  "  good  form  "  to  sling 
the  opponents'  balls  out  of  the  enclosure,  but  it  is  so  to  return 
them  towards  the  entrance  end. 

The  fragile  nature  of  the  rackets  necessitates  gentle  play,  and 
reduces  hitting  or  striking  to  a  minimum.  It  is  not  allowable 
to  handle  the  ball,  or  to  carry  it  in  any  other  way  than  in  the 
racket  net.     The  score  is  kept  by  means  of  two  strings  of  seven 


Polo.  387 

balls  each,  of  the  respective  colours  of  the  two  sides.  These 
strings  of  balls  are  hung  outside  the  screen  on  either  side  of 
goal.  When  a  ball  is  put  into  goal,  a  ball  of  the  same  colour 
is  taken  off  its  string.  Thus  the  number  of  balls  remaining  on 
each  string  denotes,  not  the  number  of  balls  already  scored  by 
each  side,  but  the  number  which  still  remains  to  be  scored  to 
complete  the  tale  of  seven.  The  scoring  of  a  ball  is  further 
announced  by  two  blows  upon  a  drum  for  one  side,  upon  a 
gong  for  the  other. 

When  one  side  has  scored  seven  balls,  it  enters  the  second 
and  final  stage  of  the  game.  Drum  or  gong,  as  the  case  may 
be,  loudly  announces  the  fact  by  repeated  strokes.  That  side's 
hitherto  slanting  flagstaff  is  raised  to  a  vertical  position,  its 
scoring  string  stands  empty.  A  banded  ball  of  its  colour  is  thrown 
into  the  enclosure  from  the  entrance  barrier  by  an  attendant,  and 
is  scrambled  for  by  both  sides.  This  is  the  only  ball  of  the 
colour  now  in  play.  Should  it  be  forced  out  of  play,  it  is  im- 
mediately replaced  by  a  similar  banded  ball  thrown  into  the 
enclosure  in  the  same  manner,  and  so  on.  Should  it  be  slung 
into  goal,  the  game  is  over,  the  side  of  that  colour  winning  the 
game.  In  like  manner,  should  the  other  side  score  their  seventh 
ball  before  the  opponents  score  their  banded  ball,  they  too  are 
heralded  into  the  second  stage  of  the  game,  with  flag,  gong,  or 
drum,  and  empty  scoring  string.  They,  too,  have  a  banded  ball 
of  their  colour  thrown  into  court,  the  only  one  of  that  colour 
then  in  play,  also  replaced  by  a  similar  ball  in  the  event  of  its 
being  forced  out  of  play.  The  two  sides  are  in  that  case  again 
equal,  and  whichever  side  scores  its  banded  ball  first  wins  the 
game.  (Until  the  unsuccessful  side  scores  its  seventh  ball,  how- 
ever, it  still  remains  in  the  first  stage  of  the  game,  and  can  play 
with  an  unlimited  number  of  balls.)  The  winning  stroke  is 
announced  by  loud  beating  of  the  gong  or  drum,  and  by 
waving  of  the  flag  which  distinguishes  the  winning  side.  The 
winners  ride  out  of  the  enclosure  in  single  file,  while  the  losers 
dismount  and  follow  on  foot,  leading  their  horses, — a  picturesque 


388  Population. 

conclusion  to  a  noble  and  manly  game.  Should  neither  side 
score  its  banded  ball  within  a  given  time  (half-an-hour  usually) 
from  the  commencement  of  play,  the  game  is  drawn. 

The  following  minor  points  deserve  notice  : — 

The  importance  of  the  banded  ball  is  always  denoted  by  a 
change  in  the  whole  character  of  the  game.  "  Goal  keepers " 
are  stationed  near  the  goal  to  defend  it.  Players  are  told  off 
to  endeavour  to  obtain  and  keep  possession  of  the  opponents' 
banded  ball.  Dodging,  slinging  from  a  distance,  passing,  drib- 
bling, and  empounding  all  add  an  animation  and  excitement  to 
-the  last  stage  of  the  game  which  are  somewhat  wanting  in  the  first. 

Picking  up  the  ball  is  an  art  easily  acquired  ;  not  so  the  wrist 
motion  necessary  to  retain  the  ball  in  the  racket  net.  This  must 
be  the  result  either  of  practice  or  of  natural  sleight  of  hand. 

The  game  is  sometimes  played  with  three  balls  instead  of 
seven,  either  in  order  to  shorten  it,  or  when  there  is  not  the  full 
complement  of  players. 

Other  games  played  on  horseback  are  the  Samurai  Odori,  or 
Warriors'  Dance,  which  may  perhaps  be  best  described  as  a  giant 
quadrille  in  armour,  and  the  Inu  Ou  Mono,  or  Dog  Chase,  a 
cruel  though  not  exactly  bloody  sport,  the  gist  of  which  is  shoot- 
ing at  dogs  with  blunt  arrows.     Both  are  now  extremely  rare. 

Population.  The  latest  census  gives  the  population  of  Japan 
proper,  exclusive  of  Formosa,  at  45,426,651,  of  whom  22,928,043 
men,  and  22,498,649  women.  These  figures  refer  to  the  31st 
December,  1901.  A  comparison  with  those  for  each  year  from 
1892  onwards,  when  the  total  was  only  41,089,940  shows  an 
average  annual  increase  of  1.09  per  cent.  The  great  cities  also 
show  a  constant  growth.  Tokyo,  which  in  1894  had  1,368,000 
inhabitants,  numbered  1,440,000  at  the  last  census  ;  the  corres- 
ponding figures  for  Osaka,  the  second  largest  and  commercially 
the  most  important  city  in  the  empire,  are  respectively  506,000 
and  821,000  ;  those  for  Kyoto  343,000  and  353,000.     The  next 


Population.  389 

in  population  after  these  are  Nagoya  with  244,000,  Kobe  with 
215,000,  Yokohama  with  193,000,  Hiroshima  with  122,000,  and 
Nagasaki  with  107,000  ;  and  there  are  now  twenty-one  cities  of 
over  50,000  inhabitants,  sixty-one  more  having  over  20,000. 

While  Japan  remained  closed,  plague  and  famine  helped  from 
time  to  time  to  keep  the  population  down.  World-wide  inter- 
course now  completely  obviates  any  recurrence  of  famine,  and 
scientific  hygiene  restricts  epidemic  diseases  within  narrow  limits. 
But  emigration  has  stepped  in  as  a  new  depopulating  agency. 
Yezo,  an  empty  and  barbarous  waste,  which  hardly  counted  as 
part  of  Japan  proper  till  about  1870,  has  to  be  filled  up  ; 
Formosa,  since  its  annexation  in  1895,  requires  at  least  officials 
and  soldiers  ;  Hawaii,  lying  so  near  at  hand,  and  with  a  native 
population  too  idle  to  perform  much  work  in  the  sugar-planta- 
tions, has  for  several  years  past  offered  a  tempting  field  to  Japanese 
labour  ;  Hongkong,  Singapore,  even  the  American  and  Australian 
Pacific  ports  attract  numbers  of  young  men  of  a  slightly  higher 
class,  who  go  off  to  seek  their  fortune  as  clerks,  shopboys,  hair- 
dressers, domestic  servants,  etc.  ;  and  the  mere  knowledge  that 
emigration  is  practised  by  Europeans  has  been  a  factor  favouring  it 
in  the  minds  of  several  of  the  leaders  of  this  most  imitative  nation. 

Notwithstanding  all  this,  it  is  plain  to  every  observer  that 
emigration  does  not  genuinely  suit  the  Japanese  bent.  Yezo 
itself,  rich  though  it  be,  and  despite  some  colonies  officially 
planted,  does  not  get  filled  up.  Thousands,  it  is  true,  cross 
over  there  every  season  for  the  fisheries  and  fortune-hunting 
generally  ;  but  with  the  approach  of  winter,  the)-  fly  home  to  the 
Main  Island.  The  same  thing  happens  with  the  emigrants  to 
Hawaii.  They  are  but  contract  labourers  taken  over  for  a  time 
in  batches,  managed  for  corporately,  and  all  returning  home  as 
soon  as  their  little  pile  is  made.  Climate  may  have  something 
to  do  with  it.  The  Japanese,  unlike  the  Chinese,  do  not  habituate 
themselves  readily  either  to  heat  or  to  cold.  Their  method  of 
house-building,  which  they  carry  with  them  unaltered,  is  singularly 
ill-suited  to  a  cold  climate,    neither    is    it    well-suited    to    a  hot 


390  Porcelain  and  Pottery. 

and  damp  one  as,  for  instance,  that  of  Formosa.  They  long 
for  Japanese  food,  for  the  Japanese  hot  springs,  for  such  Japa- 
nese social  pleasures  as  go  with  the  twanging  of  the  samisen, 
for  the  thousand  and  one  little  amenities  and  facilities  of  Japanese 
life.  Officials  sent  even  to  the  provinces  of  Japan  proper  eat  their 
hearts  out  yearning  for  Tokyo,  which  is  to  them  all  that  Paris 
ever  was  to  the  typical  Frenchman.  How  much  worse  must  they 
find  their  exile,  when  set  down  on  some  distant  shore  ! 

A  sore  point  with  those  Japanese  who  favour  genuine  emigra- 
tion is  the  discovery,  made  for  them  by  statistics,  that  the  class 
by  which,  of  all  others,  they  would  least  wish  their  country  to 
be  represented  abroad  is  that  which  emigrates  most, — at  any  rate 
to  the  China  ports  and  as  far  south  as  Singapore.  The  subject 
is  a  delicate  one  ;  but  we  shall  be  understood  if  we  say  that,  at 
more  than  one  census,  it  has  been  found  that  the  young  female 
Japanese  residents  in  such  ports  outnumber  the  males.  Strenuous 
efforts  are  made  to  prevent  emigration  of  this  particular  kind  ; 
but  the  cunning  with  which  they  are  evaded  is  often  remarkable. 
Another  particular  calling  for  improvement  is  the  behaviour  of 
Japanese  emigrants  towards  less  civilised  races.  Every  one  who 
has  seen  them  in  Formosa,  and  especially  in  Korea,  tells  of  super- 
cilious and  often  brutal  conduct.  They  have  imitated  the  white  man 
in  everything,  even  in  his  ill-treatment  of  what  he  contemptuously 
terms  "  natives.'"  Hence  the  bitter  hatred  with  which  the  Japa- 
nese are  regarded  throughout  Korea,  where,  of  all  countries  in  the 
world,  it  would  have  been  expedient  to  court  popularity,  and 
endeavour  thus  to  efface  the  recollection  of  old-time  wrongs. 

Book  recommended.     Resumi  Statistique  de  V Empire  du  Japon,  published  yearly. 

Porcelain  and  Pottery.  At  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century 
after  Christ,  the  Korean  polity  and  civilisation  were  ruthlessly 
overthrown  by  Japanese  invaders.  The  Korean  art  of  porcelain- 
making  then  crossed  the  water.  All  Japan's  chief  potteries  date 
from  that  time,  her  teachers  being  Korean  captives.  What  had 
gone  before  was  but  preparatory, — such  things,   we  mean,  as  the 


Porcelain  and  Pottery.  391 

coarse  clay  vessels  attributed  to  the  eighth  century  saint,  Gyogi 
Bosatsu,  the  black  and  chocolate-coloured  tea-jars  of  Seto,  which 
date  from  the  thirteenth  century,  and  Shonzui's  imitations  of 
Chinese  blue  porcelain,  which  date  from  the  first  half  of  the 
sixteenth  century.  These  early  efforts  may  greatly  interest  the 
antiquary  ;  and  the  association  of  some  of  them  with  the  celebrat- 
ed "  tea  ceremonies  "  {cha-no-yu)  gives  them  a  succes  ctestime  in 
the  eyes  of  native  collectors.  But  they  are  not  art  properly  so 
called.  Japanese  ceramic  art  dates,  roughly  speaking,  from  the 
year  1600.  It  reached  its  zenith,  also  roughly  speaking,  between 
the  years  1750  and  1830.  The  ''Old  Satsuma"  crackled  ware, 
of  which  European  collections  contain  (query  :  do  they  ?)  such 
numerous  specimens,  possesses  therefore  no  fabulous  antiquity  ;  the 
only  thing  often  fabulous  about  it  is  its  genuineness.  The  real 
golden  age  of  Saisuma  faience  was  the  half-century  from  1800 
to  1850. 

The  other  principal  centres  of  the  Japanese  ceramic  art  are 
the  province  of  Hizen,  noted  for  the  enamelled  porcelain  made 
at  Arila — the  "  Old  Japan  "  of  European  collectors — besides  other 
varieties ;  Kaga,  which,  after  a  long  and  checkered  history,  is 
now  known  chiefly  for  the  Kulani  porcelain  richly  decorated  in 
red  and  gold ;  and  Kyoto,  whose  Raku  faience  has  long  been 
associated  with  the  tea  ceremonies.  Kyoto  is  also  the  home 
of  the  Awaia  faience  originated  by  the  celebrated  artist  Ninsei 
about  A.D.  1650,  and  of  other  varieties  known  by  the  names  of 
Kiyomizu,  Gojo-zaka,  Iivakura-yaki,  etc.  The  potteries  of  Kyoto 
are  those  within  most  easy  reach  of  the  traveller,  and  a  visit  to 
them  should  on  no  account  be  omitted.  Then  there  is  Owari, 
which  produces  many  varieties  of  porcelain  and  certain  descrip- 
tions of  faience  and  stoneware.  Though  here  named  last,  the 
Owari  potteries  would  seem  to  be  the  most  ancient  of  all ;  and 
\he  village  of  Seto  in  this  province  has  given  its  name  to  pottery 
and  porcelain  in  general,  such  objects  being  familiarly  spoken  of 
by  the  Japanese  as  selo-?nono,  that  is,  "Seto  things,"  much  as 
we  use  the  word  "  china.'"' 


392  Porcelain  and  Pottery. 

Japan  boasts  many  other  famous  ceramic  wares.  Such  are  the 
various  kinds  of  Bizen  ware,  of  which  the  most  original  are 
humorous  figures  of  gods,  birds,  lions,  and  other  creatures ;  the 
thin,  mostly  unglazed  Banko  ware,  whose  manufacturers  at  the 
present  day  display  great  ingenuity  in  giving  quaint  fanciful 
shapes  to  tea-pots  and  other  small  articles ;  the  Awaji  faience, 
consisting  chiefly  of  small  monochromatic  pieces  with  a  bright 
yellow  or  green  glaze ;  the  Soma  pottery,  to  be  recognised  by 
the  picture  of  a  running  horse ;  the  egg-shell  cups  of  Mino  ;  and 
the  Takaiori,  Izumo,  and  Yaisushiro  wares,  the  last  of  which — 
especially    in  its  more  ancient  specimens — is  very  highly  prized. 

The  qualities  of  sobriety  and  "  distinction,"  which  are  so 
noticeable  in  the  other  branches  of  Japanese  art,  have  not  failed 
to  impress  themselves  on  the  ceramics  of  this  esthetic  land.  Some 
of  the  early  Arita  porcelain  was,  it  is  true,  manufactured  to  the 
order  of  Dutch  traders  at  Nagasaki,  and  bears  the  marks  of  this 
extraneous  influence  in  the  gaudy  overcrowding  of  its  decoration. 
For  this  fault  Wagenaar  and  other  chiefs  of  the  Dutch  factory 
are  responsible,  not  the  Japanese  whom  they  employed,  A  British 
matron  possessed  of  the  necessary  funds  may  dictate  as  she  pleases 
to  a  Paris  modiste  ;  but  the  result  is  not  necessarily  a  perfect  index 
of  Parisian  taste.  The  typical  Japanese  ceramists  were  no  hired 
workmen,  no  mere  sordid  manufacturers,  but  artists,  and  not 
only  artists,  but  clansmen  faithful  to  their  feudal  chief.  By  him 
they  were  fed  ;  for  him  and  for  the  love  of  their  art  they  worked. 
Pieces  were  made  for  special  occasions, — for  presents,  say,  from  their 
lord  to  the  Shogun  at  Yedo,  or  for  the  trousseau  of  their  lord's 
daughter.  Time  was  no  object.  There  was  no  public  of  mediocre 
taste  to  cater  for.  Nothing  was  made,  as  the  vulgar  phrase  is, 
for  the  million.  The  art  was  perfectly  and  essentially  aristocratic. 
Hence  the  distinction  of,  for  instance,  the  early  Satsuma  ware, 
the  delicacy  of  its  drawing,  the  subdued  harmony  of  its  colour-' 
ing.  It  is  a  mere  piece  of  amiable  optimism  to  suppose  it 
possible  that  such  a  tradition  can  be  kept  up  in  the  days  which 
have    produced    that    frightful,    but    aptly   descriptive,  term,  "art 


Posts.  393 

manufacture."  The  same  thing-  is  true,  generally  speaking,  of 
Japanese  art  in  all  its  branches.  The  painter,  the  lacquerer,  the 
worker  in  metal,  —  all  had  in  view  the  personal  requirements  of 
a  small  and  highly  cultivated  class  of  nobles.  Money-making 
was  never  their  aim,  nor  were  their  minds  distracted  by  the 
knowledge  of  the  existence  of  numerous  styles  besides  their  own. 
It  need  scarcely  be  added  that  public  "collections,"  whether 
of  porcelain  or  of  other  art-objects,  were  entirely  foreign  to  the 
spirit  and  usage  of  Old  Japan.  They  date  back  only  a  few 
decades,  and  owe  their  origin  to  European  influence.  The  Ueno 
Museum  at  Tokyo  and  the  Museum  at  Nara  are  perhaps  the 
best  in  the  country.  But  we  believe  that  the  finest  collections 
of  Japanese  porcelain  and  pottery  are  to  be  seen  abroad,  that 
brought  together  by  Professor  E.  S.  Morse  and  now  belonging  to 
the  Museum  of  Fine  Arts  at  Boston,  Massachusetts,  being  the 
most  complete  and  therefore  the  most  instructive  in  the  world. 
(See  also  Article  on  Archaeology.) 

Books  recommended.  Brinkley's  Japan  and  China,  Vol.  VIII,  is  exhaustive. 
See  also  Catalogue  of  the  Morse  Collection  of  Japanese  Pottery,  and  for  prehistoric 
pottery,  The  Dolmens  and  Burial  Mounds  in  Japan,  by  Wm.  Gowland,  published  by 
the  Society  of  Antiquaries  (London). — Japan  and  its  Art,  by  M.  B.  Huish,  is  a  smaller 
popular  treatise. 

Posts.  When  Ieyasu,  m  A.D.  1603,  brought  Japan  to  a  state 
of  peace  which  lasted  for  two  hundred  and  fifty  years,  a  rude 
postal  system  spontaneously  sprang  up  in  the  shape  of  private 
agencies,  called  hikyaku-ya,  which  undertook,  for  a  low  charge, 
but  also  at  a  low  rate  of  speed,  to  transmit  private  correspondence 
from  place  to  place  both  by  land  and  sea.  The  official  despatches 
of  the  Sh5gunate  were  all  sent  by  special  government  couriers, 
under  the  control  of  postmasters  {ekiteishi )  at  the  various  post- 
towns.  Couriers  belonging  to  the  different  clans  carried  the 
despatches  of  their  respective  Daimyos  to  and  from  the  seat  of 
government  at  Yedo. 

The  first  approximation  to  a  modern  postal  system  was  that 
introduced  earl}'  in   1871,  chiefly  through  the  efforts  of  Mr.   (now 


394  Posts. 

Baron)  Maejima,  following  American  models.  A  government  postal 
service  was  then  established  along  the  Tokaido  between  Tokyo, 
Kyoto,  and  Osaka,  and  extended  in  1872  to  the  whole  country,  with 
the  exception  of  certain  parts  of  Yezo.  The  1  sen  6  rin,  8  sen,  and 
16  sen  stamps  of  those  early  days  have  become  extremely  rare. 
Concurrently  with  the  Imperial  Japanese  post-office,  American 
postal  agencies  continued  to  exist  at  the  Treaty  Ports  until  the 
end  of  1873,  and  French  and  English  agencies  until  1879,  when 
Japan  was  admitted  into  the  International  Postal  Union,  with  full 
management  of  all  her  postal  affairs.  Japanese  letter-postage 
soon  became  the  cheapest  in  the  world,  because  originally  based 
on  a  silver  standard  which  naturally  shared  in  the  universal 
depreciation  of  that  metal.  Inland  letters  went  for  2  sen,  that 
is,  about  a  halfpenny,  post-cards  for  half  that  sum.  In  1899 
these  rates  were  raised  fifty  per  cent,  so  that  domestic  letters 
now  cost  3  sen  (for  |oz.),  post-cards  i\  sen.  Foreign  postage 
to  all  countries  included  in  the  Postal  Union  is  10  sen  (two- 
pence halfpenny,  though  originally  intended  to  be  equivalent  to 
fivepence).  There  is  an  excellent  system  of  postal  savings-banks, 
and  money  orders  and  parcel-post  are  largely  made  use  of.  In 
the  last  year  for  which  statistics  are  available  (1903),  the  num- 
ber of  domestic  letters  carried  was  213,956,000,  of  post-cards 
488,890,000,  and  of  parcels  10,413,000,  while  the  miscellaneous 
items  amounted  to  199,845,000.  The  total  of  foreign  items 
(letters,  post-cards,  etc.)  was  13,808,000.  The  dead-letter  office 
in  Japan  has  very  light  work,  as  it  is  the  commendable  national 
habit  for  correspondents  to  put  their  own  name  and  address  on 
the  back  of  the  envelope. 

During  the  early  years  of  its  independent  career,  the  Japanese 
post-office  won  golden  opinions.  Of  late  it  has  fallen  somewhat 
in  public  esteem.  The  reason  of  the  deterioration  may  probably 
be  found  in  the  want  of  continuity  in  the  executive,  and  in  the 
fact  that  the  Ministry  of  Communications,  to  which  the  post-office 
belongs,  has  come  to  be  treated  as  a  political  prize,  which  is 
bestowed,  not  on  a  competent  specialist,  but  on  some  politician 


Praying-wheel.  395 

whose  temporary  support  it  is  thought  desirable  to  secure. 
Besides  the  early  stamps  mentioned  above,  those  issued  in 
1895  to  commemorate  the  Emperor's  Silver  Wedding,  and  those 
issued  in  1896  to  commemorate  the  China  war  will  have  special 
interest  for  collectors.  Of  both  these  issues,  only  the  values  2 
sen  and  5  sen  exist.  The  War  Commemoration  stamps  are  also 
noteworthy,  because  one  set  of  each  value  bears  the  image  of  the 
late  Prince  Arisugawa,  Commander-in-Chief,  and  another  set  that 
of  Prince  Kita-Shirakawa,  who  died  fighting  in  Formosa.  A 
peculiar  feeling  of  awe  has  hitherto  prevented  the  Emperor's 
effigy  from  being  thus  used,  and  some  conservative  persons 
objected  at  the  time  even  to  the  issue  bearing  the  effigies  of  the 
Imperial  Princes.  The  latest  special  issue  was  a  pink  3  sen  stamp 
commemorative  of  the  Wedding  of  the  Crown  Prince  in  May, 
1900.  On  it  is  represented  a  box  of  rice-cakes  (mochi),  such  as 
are  partaken  of  by  Imperial  personages  on  the  first  three  evenings 
of  wedded  life,  while  below,  in  a  smaller  box,  are  some  chop- 
sticks with  which  to  convey  them  to  the  month.  Picture  post- 
cards came  into  vogue  about  the  beginning  of  the  century ; 
some  of  them  take  up  in  a  charming  manner  the  art  motives 
of  "  Old  Japan."  Others  follow  the  vulgarest  European  prece- 
dents. 

Praying- wheel.  This  instrument  of  devotion,  so  popular 
in  Thibetan  Buddhism,  is  comparatively  rare  in  Japan,  and  is 
used  in  a  slightly  different  manner,  no  prayers  being  written  on 
it.  Its  raison  cV  elre,  so  far  as  the  Japanese  are  concerned,  must  be 
sought  in  the  doctrine  of  ingwa,  according  to  which  everything 
in  this  life  is  the  outcome  of  actions  performed  in  a  previous 
state  of  existence.  For  example,  a  man  goes  blind  :  this  re- 
sults from  some  crime  committed  by  him  in  his  last  avatar. 
He  repents  in  this  life,  and  his  next  life  will  be  a  happier 
one ;  or  he  does  not  repent,  and  he  will  then  go  from  bad 
to  worse  in  successive  rebirths.  In  other  words,  the  doctrine  is 
that    of  evolution    applied    to    ethics.     This  perpetual  succession 


39^  Printing. 

of  cause  and  effect  resembles  the  turning  of  a  wheel.  So  the 
believer  turns  the  praying-wheel,  which  thus  becomes  a  symbol 
of  human  fate,  with  an  entreaty  to  the  compassionate  god  Jizo* 
to  let  the  misfortune  roll  by,  the  pious  desire  be  accomplished, 
the  evil  disposition  amended  as  swiftly  as  possible.  Only  the 
Tendai  and  Shingon  sects  of  Buddhists  use  the  praying-wheel  — 
goshb- gumma  as  they  call  it — whence  its  comparative  rarity  in 
Japan.  Visitors  to  Tokyo  will  find  three  outside  a  small  shrine 
dedicated  to  the  god  Fudo  close  to  the  large  temple  of  Asakusa. 
They  are  mounted  on  low  posts  not  unlike  pillar  post-boxes. 

The  wheel  which  figures  so  frequently  in  Buddhist  architectural 
design  is  not  the  praying-wheel,  but  the  so-called  horin  (Sanskrit 
dhannachakrd),  or  "  Wheel  of  the  Law,"  a  symbol  of  the  doctrine 
of  transmigration.  Neither  must  the  praying- wheel  be  confounded 
with  the  "  revolving  libraries "  {ienrinzo  or  rinzo),  sometimes  met 
with  in  the  grounds  of  Buddhist  temples.  These  "revolving 
libraries"  mostly  contain  complete  or  nearly  complete  sets  of 
the  Buddhist  scriptures  ;  and  he  who  causes  the  library  to  revolve, 
lays  up  for  himself  as  much  merit  as  if  he  had  read  through 
the  entire  canon. 

Book  recommended.     The  Buddhist  Praying-wheel)  by  Wm.  Simpson. 

Printing  reached  Japan  from  China  in  the  wake  of  Buddhism  ; 
but  it  came  somewhat  later  than  the  other  arts.  The  earliest 
example  of  block-printing  in  Japan  dates  from  A.D.  770,  when  the 
Empress  Shotoku  caused  a  million  Buddhist  charms  to  be  printed 
on  small  slips  of  paper,  for  distribution  among  all  the  temples 
in  the  land.  Some  of  these  ancient  slips  are  still  in  existence. 
The  first  notice  of  printed  books  occurs  in  the  tenth  century,  and 
the  oldest  specimen  extant  belongs  to  a  date  falling  somewhere 
between  1198  and  12 11. 

For  about  six  hundred  years  after  the  introduction  of  printing, 
Buddhist    works — and    those   but   few  in  number — seem  to  have 

*  See  Introduction  to  Murray's  Handbook  for  Jttpa;i  (Article  "  Gods  and  Goddesses") 
or  an  account  of  this  popular  deity. 


Printing.  397 

been  the  only  ones  that  issued  from  the  press.  The  Confucian 
Analects  were  first  reprinted  in  Japan  in  1364,  from  which  time 
down  to  tire  end  of  the  sixteenth  century  Japanese  editions  of 
various  standard  Chinese  works,  both  in  poetry  and  prose,  were 
published  from  time  to  time.  But  the  impulse  to  a  more  vigorous 
production  was  given  by  the  conquest  of  Korea  at  the  end  of  the 
sixteenth  century,  and  by  the  Shogun  Ieyasu's  liberal  patronage 
of  learning  at  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth.  The  Japanese 
learnt  from  the  vanquished  Koreans  the  use  of  movable  types. 
These,  however,  went  out  of  fashion  again  before  the  middle  of 
the  seventeenth  century,  the  enormous  number  of  types  necessary 
for  the  printing  of  the  Chinese  written  character  making  the 
method  practically  inconvenient. 

The  first  genuinely  Japanese  production  to  appear  in  print  was 
the  Nihongi,  or  rather  the  first  two  books  of  the  Nihotigi,  in  A.D. 
1599.  This  work,  which  contains  the  native  mythology  and 
early  history,  had  been  composed  as  far  back  as  A.D.  720.  The 
collection  of  ancient  poems  entitled  Man-ybshu  (see  p.  378), 
dating  from  the  middle  of  the  eighth  century,  was  also  first 
printed  about  the  same  time.  From  that  period  onward,  the 
work  of  putting  into  print  the  old  manuscript  stores  of  Japanese 
literature  went  on  apace,  while  a  new  literature  of  comment- 
aries, histories,  poems,  popular  novels,  guide-books,  etc.,  kept  the 
block-cutters  constantly  employed.  The  same  period  saw  the 
introduction  of  pictorial  wood  engraving. 

Since  about  1870,  the  Japanese  have  adopted  European  methods 
of  type-founding.  The  result  is  that  movable  types  have  again 
come  to  the  fore,  though  without  causing  block-printing  to  be 
entirely  abandoned.  All  the  newspapers  are  printed  with  movable 
types.  A  Japanese  movable  type  printing-office  would  be  a 
strange  sight  to  a  European  printer.  Provision  has  to  be  made 
for,  not  26  characters,  but  6,100,  which  is  approximately  the 
number  of  Chinese  ideographs  in  every-day  use ;  and  of  each 
character  there  must  of  course  be  different  sizes — pica,  long  primer, 
brevier,  and  so  on.     Needless    to    say    that   so  vast  a  number  of 


398  Printing. 

characters  cannot  possibly  fit  into  one  small  case  within  reach 
of  a  single  man's  hand  and  eye.  They  are  ranged  round  a  large 
room  on  trays,  in  the  order  of  their  "  radicals ;  "  and  youths, 
supplied  each  with  a  page  of  the  "  copy "  to  be  set  up,  walk 
about  from  tray  to  tray,  picking  out  the  characters  required, 
which  they  put  in  a  box  and  then  take  to  the  compositor.  As 
these  youths,  more  japonico,  keep  droning  out  all  the  while  in  a 
sort  of  chant  the  text  on  which  they  are  busy,  the  effect  to 
the  ear  is  as  peculiar  as  is  to  the  eye  the  sight  of  the  perpetual 
motion  of  this  troop  of  youths  coming  and  going  from  case  to  case. 
We  have  used  the  word  "radicals"  in  the  above  description. 
For  the  sake  of  those  who  are  unfamiliar  with  Chinese  writing,  it 
must  be  explained  that  the  Chinese  characters  are  put  together, 
not    alphabetically,    but   by    the   combination   of  certain   simpler 

forms,  of  which  the  principal  are  termed  "  radicals/'     Thus  ;?k 
is  the  radical  for  "tree"  or  "wood,"  under  which    are   grouped 
J&&    "plum-tree,"    ;#§>     "willow,"    %&     "a  board,"    etc.,    etc. 

The    radical    for    "  water "  is    yH^    abbreviated  in  compounds  to 

^  ;   and  under  it  accordingly  come  J^    "a  pond,"  -j||J  "oil," 

5fS    "wine,"  "jfe-   "to    swim,"    and    hundreds    of  other  words 

having,  in  one  way  or  another,  to  do  with  fluidity.  Of  course 
Japanese  printing-offices  also  have  to  make  provision  for  the 
native  syllabic  characters,  the  so-called  Kana.  But  as  there  are 
only  between  two  and  three  hundred  forms  of  these,  and  as  they 
are  generally  used  only  for  terminations  and  particles,  they  are 
comparatively  unimportant. 

The  6,100  Chinese  characters  in  common  use  are  cast  in 
metal,  according  to  one  of  the  European  processes.  When  a  rare 
character  occurs  in  an  author's  manuscript,  it  is  cut  in  wood  for 
the  occasion.  To  keep  types  on  hand  for  all  the  seventy  or 
eighty  thousand  characters  of  the  Chinese  language,  would  entail 
an  expense  too  heavy  for  even  the  largest  printing-office  to  bear, 


Proverbs.  399 

and  would  require  too  much  room.     (Compare  Article  on  Wood 
Engraving.) 

Books  recommended.  On  the  Early  History  of  Printing  in  Japan,  in  Vol.  X. 
Part.  I.,  and  Further  Notes  on  Movable  Types  in  Korean  and  Early  Japanese  Printed 
Books,  in  Vol.  X.  Part  II.  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions,"  by  Sir  Ernest  Satow.  Our 
own  remarks  are  chiefly  founded  on  these  two  valuable  essays. 

Proverbs.     Here  are  a  few  Japanese  proverbs*:  — 

Proof  rather  than  argument. 

Dumplings  rather  than  blossoms. 

Breeding  rather  than  birth. 

A  mended  lid  to  a  cracked  pot.  (An  assemblage  of  incapables  ; 
for  instance,  a  drunken  husband  and  a  silly  ivife.) 

A  cheap  purchase  is  money  lost. 

A  bee  stinging  a  weeping  face.  (One  misfortune  on  the  top 
of  another.) 

Cows  herd  with  cows,  horses  with  horses.  (Birds  of  a  feather 
flock  together?) 

Not  to  know  is  to  be   a  Buddha.      (Ignorance  is  bliss.) 

A  man's  heart  and  an  autumn  sky  (are  alike  fickle).  The 
exact  converse  of  the  famous   "  Souvenl  femme  varie." 

Hate  the  priest,  and  you  will  hate  his  very  hood. 

Never  trust  a  woman,  even  if  she  has  borne  you  seven  children. 

The  acolyte  at  the  gate  reads  scriptures  which  he  has  never  learnt. 

Excessive  tenderness  turns   to  hundred-fold  hatred. 

To  lose  is  to  win. 

Ten  men,  ten  minds.  (Literally,  " ten  men,  ten  bellies,"  the 
mental  faculties  being,  according  to  popular  belief,  located  in  the 
abdomen.) 

When  folly  passes  by,  reason  draws  back. 

*  Some  persons  may  like  to  see  the  Japanese  originals  of  these  proverbs,  which  are 
given  in  the  same  order  as  that  of  the  English  renderings  above: 
Ron  yori  shdko. 
Hana  yori  da?igo. 
Uji  yori  sodachi . 
Ware-nabe  ni  toji-buta. 
Yasu-mono-kai  no  zeni  ushinai. 
Naki-tsura  wo  hachi  ga  sasu. 


400  Pug-dogs. 

The  drunkard  belies  not  his  true  character.     (In  vino  Veritas.) 

A  physician  breaking  the  rules  of  health.  (To  preach  and  not 
io  practise.) 

Amateur  tactics  cause  grave  wounds.  (A  little  learning  is  a 
dangerous  thing.) 

Lazyboots  working  on  a  holiday.  (Useless  show  in  lieu  of 
quiet  perseverance  in  good.) 

Book  Recommended.     Japanische  Sprichivbrter,  by  P.  Ehmann,  Supplement  to  the 
"German  Asiatic  Transactions"  for  1897-8. 

Pug-dogs.  The  chin,  or  Japanese  pug,  is  a  delicate,  timid 
little  creature  generally  black  and  white,  weighing  no  more  than  a 
small  cat,  and  having  goggle  eyes  that  stick  out  like  glass  marbles. 
If,  at  birth,  the  nose  is  not  considered  sufficiently  snub,  it  is 
pressed  in  with  the  finger.  Doubtless  this  process,  by  stopping 
up  some  passage,  induces  the  habit  of  constant  sneezing  with 
which  many  of  these  animals  are  afflicted: — "She  looks  like  a 
pug  sneezing,"  is  a  common  phrase  to  denote  one  particular 
kind  of  ugly  face.  Owing  to  their  extreme  delicacy,  the  greatest 
care  is  needed  in  their  management.  Formerly,  in  Daimyos' 
mansions,  the  pet  pugs  were  under  the  care  of  special  women, 
and  were  never  allowed  to  set  foot  out-of-doors.  Nevertheless, 
one— so  the  true  story  goes — could  not  be  kept  from  following 
its  lord's  procession,  and  was  therefore  taken  up  into  his  august 
palanquin  and  brought  to  the  capital,  which  example  of  fidelity 
coming   to   the   Sovereign's   ears,    the   little  creature  was  granted 

Ushi  wa  uski-zure,  utna  w'a  utna-zure. 

Shir  ami  ga  Hotoke. 

Otoko  no  kokoro  to  aki  no  sora. 

Bozn  ga  nikukereba,  kesa  made  nikuz. 

Shichi-nin  no  ko  wo  nasic  to  mo,  onna  ni  kokoro  iuo  yurusu  na. 

Monzen  no  kozo  naraiaanu  kyo  wo  yomn. 

Kawaisa  amatte,  nikusa  ga  hyaku-bai. 

Maker n  ga  kachi. 

yi-ftjn  to-hara. 

Mttri  ga  toreba,  dZri  hikkomu. 

Nama-yoi  konsho  tagawazu. 

/ska  no fu-yojo. 

Nama-byoho  okizu  1:0  moto. 

Namake-mono  no  sekku-batarafti. 


Race. 


401 


official  rank.  A  very  light  diet  is  essential  :  —  rice  with  a  trifle 
of  grated  dried  bonito  just  to  give  it  a  flavour,  but  no  othei  fish 
or  meat.  Eggs,  too,  are  good,  and  bread  and  milk  or  biscuits, 
but  not  too  much  of  anything.  Contrary  to  the  practice  mentioned 
above,  the  dealers  recommend  a  modicum  of  exercise.  With 
care,  a  chin  may  live  to  the  age  of  fourteen  or  fifteen. 

The  origin  of  the  chin  is  obscure,  though  the  probability  is  in 
favour  of  its  descent  from  the  Chinese  pug,  perhaps  via  Luchu, 
seeing  that  the  breed  can  be  traced  southwards  to  Satsuma.  Such 
differences  as  now  exist  would  have  arisen  from  crossing  with 
other  small  dogs  to  which  breeders  frequently  resort,  because  the 
race  is  too  delicate  to  propagate  itself  for  many  generations  unless 
reinforced  from  some  sturdier  stock.  Purchasers  are  therefore 
apt  to  be  confronted  with  a  dilemma  :  —  either  the  animal  offered 
to  them  is  pure  bred,  but  sickly ;  or  it  is  healthy,  but  not  a 
good  specimen.  Beware  of  "  legginess."  Perfect  specimens  are 
undoubtedly  very  captivating,  and  one  or  two  of  them  form 
charming  ornaments  to  a  lady's  boudoir.  They  can  be  taught 
tricks,  a  favourite  one  being  0  mawari,  that  is,  turning  round  and 
round.     The  price  (1904)  varies  from  about  60  to  80  yen. 

The  Japanese  do  not  look  on  pugs  as  dogs.  They  speak  of 
"dogs  and  pugs"  (inuya  chin),  as  if  the  latter  formed  a  distinct 
species. 

Race.  There  has  been  much  strife  among  the  learned  on  this 
question  :  to  which  race  do  the  Japanese  belong  ?  Not  scientific 
considerations  only,  but  religious  and  other  prejudices  have  been 
imported  into  the  discussion.  One  pious  member  of  the  Scotch 
Kirk  derives  the  Japanese  from  the  Lost  Tribes  of  Israel.  An 
enthusiastic  German  professor,  on  the  other  hand,  Dr.  Wernich, 
takes  up  the  cudgels  to  defend  so  charming  a  nation  against 
"  the  reproach  of  Mongolism," — whatever  that  may  be.  The  two 
greatest  authorities  on  the  subject,  Baelz  and  Rein,  say,  purely 
and  simply,  that  the  Japanese  are  Mongols.  We  incline  to  follow 
Baelz  in  his  hypothesis  of  two  chief  streams  of  immigration,  both 


402  Race. 

coming  from  Korea,  and  both  gradually  spreading  eastward  and 
northward.  The  first  of  these  immigrations  would  have  supplied 
the  round  or  so-called  "  pudding-faced "  type,  common  among 
the  lower  classes.  The  second  would  have  supplied  the  aristocratic 
type,  with  its  more  oval  outline,  thinner  nose,  more  slanting 
eyes,  and  smaller  mouth, — the  type  to  which  Japanese  actors 
endeavour  to  conform  when  representing  noblemen  and  heroes. 
Be  it  remarked  that  both  these  types  are  Mongol.  Both  have 
the  yellowish  skin,  the  straight  hair,  the  scanty  beard,  the  broadish 
skull,  the  more  or  less  oblique  eyes,  and  the  high  cheek-bones, 
which  characterise  all  well-established  branches  of  the  Mongol 
race.  It  is  certain  that  some  Mongols  have  come  over  and 
settled  in  Japan,  namely  Koreans  and  Chinamen  at  various 
epochs  of  authentic  Japanese  history. 

A  grave  difficulty  in  the  way  of  all  pat  theories  on  the  subject 
of  the  origin  of  the  Japanese  is  the  sharp  line  of  demarcation 
between  the  Japanese  language  and  the  languages  of  the  neigh- 
bouring continent.  The  Japanese  grammatical  system,  it  is  true, 
shows  remarkable  similarity  to  Korean ;  but  such  connection 
as  Mr.  Aston  has  endeavoured  to  make  out  between  the  two 
vocabularies  is  scant  and  shadowy.  Something  will  be  gained 
if  we  throw  back  to  an  indefinitely  early  period  the  immigration 
of  that  element  of  the  nation  whose  language  came  to  be  adopted 
by  all  classes, — that  is,  as  we  presume,  the  pudding-faced  element, 
the  peasantry  which  forms  the  substratum  of  the  whole,  and 
which,  as  Dr.  Florenz  and  Dr.  Simmons  have  made  clear,  remained 
in  a  state  of  serfdom  till  comparatively  recent  times. 

On  this  hypothesis  Jimmu  Tenno,  the  "  first  earthly  emperor," 
and  his  followers  would  have  been  this  early  people's  conquerors, 
or  one  set  of  its  conquerors, — the  latest  and  most  renowned, 
whose  legendary  deeds,  blended  with  those  of  other  invading 
bands  in  Izumo,  and  with  echoes  of  the  doings  of  native — or 
perhaps  also  foreign — dynasties  in  Yamato,  were  worked  up,  under 
the  influence  of  Chinese  ideas,  into  that  fantastic  compound  known 
as    "early    Japanese    history."     The    solidarity    of   the    Luchuan 


Railways.  403 

language  with  Japanese  is  an  element  of  the  problem  that  has  to 
be  taken  into  account.  Either  the  little  archipelago  must  have 
been  occupied  by  the  language-giving  race  before  the  foreign 
conquest,  or  else  it  must  have  been  occupied  by  the  conquering 
race  after  the  latter  had  adopted  the  language.  Two  other  con- 
siderations may  be  worth  adding.  One  is  that  Japanese  history 
is  solely  the  history  of  the  ruling  caste ;  the  other,  that  from  the 
very  earliest  glimmerings  of  that  history,  the  student  can  trace  a 
steady  backward  gaze  at  Korea  as  the  one  country  beyond  seas 
with  which,  from  time  to  time,  intercourse  had  existed. 

Many  guesses  have  been  hazarded  concerning  possible  Malay 
immigrations  from  the  South,  by  sea  or  via  the  Luchu  Islands. 
But  there  is  no  certain  information,  there  are  not  even  any 
legendary  traces,  of  such  immigrations.  The  Ainos,  who  are 
not  Mongols,  are  indeed  joint  occupiers  of  the  soil  of  Japan 
with  the  Japanese,  and  intermarrying  has  gone  on  between  the 
two  peoples,  and  goes  on  still.  It  has,  however,  been  pretty 
well  proved  that  this  mixed  breed  becomes  unfruitful  in  the  third 
or  fourth  generation, — a  fact  which  explains  the  rare  traces  of 
Aino  blood  even  in  the  population  of  the  extreme  north  of  the 
island.  The  two  races  are  as  distinct  as  the  whites  and  the  reds 
in  North  America. 

Books  recommended.  Die  K or per lichen  Eigenschaften  der  Japaner,  by  Dr.  E. 
Baelz,  published  in  Parts  28  and  32  of  the  "German  Asiatic  Transactions." — Altjapa- 
nische  Culturzustiinde,  by  Dr.  K.  Florenz,  in  Part  44  of  the  same. — Land  Tenure  and 
Local  Institutions  in  Japa?i,  by  Dr.  D.  B.  Simmons,  in  Vol.  XIX.  Part  I.  cf  the 
"Asiatic  Transactions." — Rev.  S.  L.  Gulick's   Evolution  of  t lie  Japanese. 


Railways.  Strategical,  no  less  than  business,  considerations 
have  been  taken  into  account  by  the  Japanese  government  in 
constructing  its  lines  of  railway.  The  great  aim  was  to  connect 
the  two  capitals,  Tokyo  and  Kyoto.  As  a  first  step,  work  was 
begun  on  the  eighteen  miles  separating  Tokyo  from  Yokohama 
as  long  ago  as  the  year  1870,  with  the  assistance  of  English 
engineers;  and  the  line  was  opened  in  1872.  Kobe  and  Osaka 
were  then  connected,  and  other   short  pieces  followed,  the  inter- 


404  Railways. 

capital  trunk  line  being  delayed  by  various  causes.  Japan  is  not 
naturally  suited  to  railway  construction  :  the  country  is  too 
mountainous ;  the  streams — mere  beds  of  sand  to-day — are  to- 
morrow, after  a  heavy  rain,  wild  surging  rivers  that  sweep  away 
bridges  and  embankments.  For  these  reasons,  the  idea  of  carry- 
ing the  Tokyo-Kyoto  railway  along  the  Nakasendo,  or  backbone 
of  the  country,  which  would  have  been  far  better  in  time  of  war, 
as  being  removed  from  the  possibility  of  an  attack  from  the  sea- 
side, fell  through,  the  engineering  difficulties  proving  insuperable. 
The  only  alternative  was  to  follow  the  Tokaido,  the  great  high- 
way of  Eastern  Japan,  which  skirts  the  coast  along  the  narrow 
strip  of  flat  country  intervening  between  the  foot  of  the  hills  and 
the  Pacific  Ocean.  This  work  was  completed,  and  the  thousandth 
mile  of  railway  opened,  in  the  summer  of  1889.  The  total  mileage 
had  increased  to  4,237  at  the  end  of  March,  1903.  The  most 
difficult  line  constructed  was  that  opened  for  traffic  in  1893, 
between  Yokohama  and  Karuizawa,  on  the  way  from  Tokyo  to 
Naoetsu.  It  leads  over  a  steep  mountain  pass  called  the  Usui- 
toge,  and  the  inclination  is  1  in  15  for  a  length  of  five  miles, 
three  miles  of  which  are  in  tunnels  all  cut  through  rock.  The 
train  is  taken  up  the  pass  by  "Abt"  engines,  which  have  a  cog- 
wheel working  on  a  rack-rail  laid  between  the  ordinary  rails. 

Japanese  railway  enterprise,  although  started  by  the  government, 
is  now  far  from  being  exclusively  in  official  hands.  Companies, 
on  the  contrary,  are  numerous,  some  private,  others  more 
or  less  under  government  shelter  and  patronage.  The  most 
important  is  the  Nippon  Tetsudo  Kwaisha  ("  Japan  Railway 
Company  "),  which  owns  the  main  line  running  north  to  Aomori. 
Next  to  it  come  the  Kyushu  Railway,  and  the  Sanyo  Railway 
which  owns  the  main  line  running  along  the  northern  shore  of  the 
Inland  Sea.  The  total  mileage  of  the  various  private  lines  ag- 
gregates nearly  three-quarters  of  the  whole  given  above. 

Reduced  to  its  simplest  expression,  the  Japanese  railway  system 
practically  consists  of  one  long  trunk  line  from  Aomori  in  the 
extreme  north  to  Shimonoseki    in    the   south-west,    together  with 


Railways.  405 

two  large  branches  connecting  each  capital  with  the  fruitful 
provinces  of  the  west  coast,  minor  branches  to  various  points  in 
the  two  metropolitan  districts,  and  local  lines  in  the  islands  of 
Kyushu,  Shikoku,  and  Yezo. 

Notwithstanding  the  natural  obstacles  to  be  overcome  and  the 
destructive  climate,  the  Japanese  lines  of  railways  have  been 
cheaply  built,  because  labour  is  cheap ;  and  they  already  pay 
fairly  well.  In  round  numbers,  the  cost  to  government  since 
1872  of  construction  and  equipment  has  been  125,000,000^^. 
The  profits  on  the  railways,  both  government  and  private,  have 
increased  steadily  year  by  year.  The  net  profit  to  government 
for  the  financial  year  ending  the  31st  March,  1903,  was  9,270,000 
yen.  The  total  number  of  passengers  carried  during  the  same 
period  of  twelve  months  over  the  government  lines  was  31,397,000; 
the  total  freight  was  3,200,000  tons.  On  the  private  lines  the 
passengers  numbered  78,121,000,  and  the  total  freight  was 
12,987,000  tons.  The  proportion  of  the  receipts  percent  on  the 
government  lines  was  as  follows  : — passenger  receipts,  66.54  per 
cent;  goods  31.83;  miscellaneous,  1.63.  The  low  proportion  of 
goods  receipts,  which  will  surprise  persons  whose  experience  has 
been  gained  in  England,  India,  or  the  United  States,  is  easily 
explained  by  geographical  conditions,  Japan's  immense  coast-line 
and  the  lofty  mountain-ranges  that  cut  up  the  greater  portion 
of  the  surface  being  reasons  that  dictate,  and  must  continue  to 
dictate,  a  preference  for  water-carriage  over  carriage  by  rail.  The 
most  formidable  obstacle  in  the  way  of  Japanese  railway  enter- 
prise is  that  conflicting  interests  and  local  intrigues  are  apt  to 
render  the  law  of  expropriation  for  public  benefit  little  more 
than  a  dead  letter.  The  extension  of  the  Inland  Sea  Line  {Sanyo 
Tetsudb)  was  long  impeded  by  this  cause,  as  capitalists  could 
not  afford  to  buy  land  at  the  preposterous  price  demanded  by 
the  owners.  Perhaps,  after  all,  an  instinct  of  self-preserva- 
tion sometimes  guides  these  obstructionists.  Experience  on  the 
Tokaido,  on  the  "  Pilgrim  Line "  to  Ise,  on  the  way  to  Nikko, 
everywhere  in  fact,  has  shown  conclusively  that  though  some  of 


406  Railways. 

the  larger  cities  profit  by  the  railways,  and  though  the  empire 
as  a  whole  profits,  their  approach  has  sounded  the  death-knell 
of  the  smaller  country  towns.  In  old  walking  and  jinrikisha 
days,  every  little  town  and  village  along  the  chief  highways  was 
bustling  and  prosperous.  Now  their  shops  are  empty,  their 
merry  inns  deserted  ;  for  their  former  customers  are  whirled  past 
them  without  stopping. 

We  have  alluded  to  the  trouble  caused  by  the  capricious  nature 
of  Japanese  rivers.  Japan  is  perhaps  the  only  country  in  the 
world  where  a  railway  may  be  obliged  to  go  under  a  river  instead 
of  over  it.  In  the  district  between  Kobe  and  Osaka  and  also 
near  Lake  Biwa,  almost  all  the  rivers  tend  to  raise  their  beds  above 
the  level  of  the  surrounding  fields,  owing  to  the  masses  of  sand, 
and  pebbles  continually  carried  down  by  their  rapid  current.  The 
river-bed  thus  stands  athwart  the  flat  strip  of  country  between  the 
mountain  and  the  sea  as  a  sort  of  wall  or  dyke,  and  the  only 
thing  to  do  is  to  take  the  line  underneath  it  by  a  tunnel,  when 
the  wall  is  of  sufficient  height  to  give  headway  for  the  train. 
Every  now  and  then  one  of  these  river-banks  bursts,  the  whole 
country-side  is  flooded,  and  the  railway  department  of  course 
put  to  heavy  expense.  Apart  from  such  exceptional  cases,  the 
recurrence  of  torrential  rains,  typhoons,  and  earthquakes  causes 
havoc  which  almost  every  year  throws  the  system  into  temporary 
disorder. 

The  Japanese  railways  are  narrow  gauge, — three  feet  six 
inches.  The  rates  are  extremely  low.  One  may  travel  first 
class  in  Japan  more  cheaply  than  third  class  in  an  English 
parliamentary  train.  Nevertheless  the  percentage  of  first  and 
even  second-class  passengers  is  small,  the  two  together  only 
forming  seven  per  cent  of  the  entire  number  carried.  The  check 
system  for  luggage  is  in  force.  Sleeping  and  dining-cars 
"(European  food)  have  recently  been  introduced  on  some  of  the 
longer  lines.  On  the  others — in  the  absence  of  refreshment- 
rooms — neat  little  boxes  of  native  food,  and  drinks  of  various 
kinds,  are  hawked  about  at  the  principal  stations. 


Railways.  407 

Despite  such  conveniences,  a  railway  journey  in  this  country 
is  apt  to  be  anything  but  a  joy.  Owing  to  some  cause  not  yet 
explained,  the  Japanese  who,  when  abiding  in  their  own  native 
ways,  are  the  very  pink  of  neatness,  become  slipshod,  not  to 
say  dirty,  when  introduced  to  certain  conditions  of  European  life. 
On  stepping  into  even  a  first-class  car,  one  as  often  as  not  has 
to  pick  one's  way  among  orange-peel,  spilt  tea,  cigar  ends,  beer- 
bottles  overturned.  The  travellers  are  wallowing  semi-recumbent 
along  the  seats,  in  untidy  habiliments  and  dishabiliments.  We 
have  even  seen  a  man — he  was  a  military  officer,  and  his  dutiful 
spouse  assisted  him — change  all  his  clothes  in  the  car,  though 
to  be  sure  he  availed  himself  of  a  friendly  tunnel  for  the  more 
adventurous  portion  of  the  enterprise.  On  another  recent  occasion, 
being  ourselves  somewhat  short-sighted,  we  could  not  at  first  make 
out  the  nature  of  the  occupation  of  an  old  gentleman  who  had 
just  finished  a  good  lunch.  Closer  scrutiny  showed  that  he  held 
his  artificial  teeth  in  his  hand,  and  was  busy  picking  and  wiping 
them  !  Then,  too,  there  is  inordinate  crowding,  and  whole 
batches  of  second-class  passengers  are,  on  the  slightest  provoca- 
tion, transferred  to  the  first.  In  fact,  the  whole  thing  is  queer 
and  unpleasant,  unless  of  course  the  traveller  be  a  philosopher 
to  whom  every  novel  experience  supplies  welcome  material  for 
meditation.  Such  a  philosopher  will  perhaps  enquire  the  reason 
of  the  stripe  of  white  paint  across  the  windows  of  the  third-class 
cars  on  certain  lines.  It  is  a  precautionary  measure  adopted  for 
the  safety  of  country  bumpkins ;  for  it  has  happened  that  some 
of  these,  lacking  personal  experience  of  glass,  have  mistaken  it 
for  air,  and  gashed  themselves  horribly  in  the  attempt  to  shove 
their  heads  through  what,  in  their  innocence,  they  supposed  to. 
be  that  non-resisting  medium. 

The  nomenclature  of  many  Japanese  railways  is  peculiar. 
The  0-  U  line,  for  instance,  is  so  called  because  it  runs  through 
the  northern  provinces  of  Rikuzen,  Rikuchu,  and  Rikuoku, 
which  together  anciently  bore  the  name  of  Oshu,  and  the 
provinces    of    Uzen  and   Ugo.      Thus    the    first   syllable    of  each 


408  Religion. 

of  these  words  is  taken.  The  Ban-Tan  line,  connecting  the 
provinces  of  Harima  and  Tajima,  receives  its  name  from  the  fact 
that  the  first  of  the  two  Chinese  characters  employed  to  write 
the  word  Harima  is  pronounced  Ban  in  other  contexts,  while 
the  first  character  of  Tajima  is  properly  Tan,  though  not  so 
pronounced  in  this  particular  instance.  Perhaps  this  may  make 
the  European  tyro's  head  swim,  but  to  the  Japanese  it  appears 
perfectly  plain  and   simple. 

Japan  has  now  its  "  Bradshaw,"  under  the  title  of  Ryokb  Annai, 
published  monthly.  The  rapid  swelling  of  this  useful  periodical 
from  half-a-dozen  pages  to  two  fat  little  volumes  is  a  striking 
index  of  Japan's  material  progress. 

Book  recommended.     The  Annual  Report  of  the  Imperial  Railway  Department. 

Religion.  Undevotional  by  temperament,*  the  Japanese  have 
nevertheless  accorded  a  measure  of  hospitality  to  the  two  greatest 
religions  of  the  world — Buddhism  and  Christianity.  Their  own 
unassisted  efforts  in  the  direction  of  religion  are  summed  up  in 
archaic  Shinto.  Modern  Shinto  has  been  profoundly  influenced 
by  Buddhism  and  Confucianism. 

*  Thus,  for  instance,  wrote  the  late  Mr.  Fukuzawa,  Japan's  most  representative  thinker 
and  educationalist :  "  It  goes  without  saying  that  the  maintenance  of  peace  and  security 
in  society  requires  a  religion.  For  this  purpose  any  religion  will  do.  I  lack  a  religious 
nature,  and  have  never  believed  in  any  religion.  I  am  thus  open  to  the  charge 
that  I  am  advising  others  to  be  religious,  when  I  am  not  so.  Yet  my  conscience  does 
not  permit  me  to  clothe  myself  with  religion,  when  I  have  it  not  at  heart.  *  *  *  * 
Of  religions,  there  are  several  kinds, — Buddhism,  Christianity,  and  what  not.  Yet,  from 
my  standpoint,  there  is  no  more  difference  between  these  than  between  green  tea  and 
black  tea.  If  makes  little  difference  whether  you  drink  one  or  the  other.  The  point 
is  to  let  those  who  have  never  drunk  tea  partake  of  it  and  know  its  taste.  Just  so 
with  religion.  Religionists  are  like  tea-merchants.  They  are  busy  selling  their  own 
kind  of  religion.  As  for  the  method  of  procedure  in  this  matter,  it  is  not  good  policy 
for  one  to  disparage  the  stock  of  others  in  order  to  praise  his  own.  What  he  ought  to 
do,  is  to  see  that  his  stock  is  well-selected  and  his  prices  cheap,  etc.,  etc."  (We  quote 
from  the  translation  given  in  the  "Japan  Herald  "  for  the  9th  September,  1897.) — Similar 
utterances  from  the  mouths  of  leading  men  might  be  quoted  by  the  score  Charac- 
teristic, too,  is  it  that  whereas  one  of  the  first  subjects  on  which  the  average  Europe- 
an seeks  information  is  the  nature  of  Japanese  religious  belief,  no  Japanese  with 
whom  we  have  come  in  contact  has  ever  questioned  us  regarding  Western  religion. 
The  subject  apparently  interests  none  except  those  few  who  become  converts. 


Religion.  409 

On  more  than  one  occasion  we  have  heard  a  Japanese  asked 
by  a  European  traveller  what  his  religion  was, — whether  Buddhist 
or  Shinto, — and  have  been  amused  at  his  look  of  blank  perplexity. 
He  could  not,  for  the  life  of  him,  make  out  what  the  enquirer 
was  driving  at.  It  is  the  established  custom  to  present  infants 
at  the  Shinto  family  temple  one  month  after  birth.  It  is  equally 
customary  to  be  buried  by  the  Buddhist  parish  priest.  The 
inhabitants  of  each  district  contribute  to  the  festivals  of  both 
religions  alike,  without  being  aware  of  any  inconsistency.  They 
do  not  draw  the  hard  and  fast  distinctions  with  which  we  are 
familiar. 

Lest  such  laxity  and  the  use  of  the  epithet  "  undevotional," 
which  we  have  employed  above,  should  mislead  the  reader,  he 
must  remember  that  devotion  and  ethics,  theology  and  conduct, 
are  separate  things.  Because  the  Japanese  seem  irreligious,  we 
would  by  no  means  be  understood  to  accuse  them  of  being 
specially  immoral.  Even  the  word  "  irreligious "  will  be  con- 
sidered by  some  of  those  who  know  them  best  scarcely  to  suit 
the  case.  The  family  shrine  in  every  household,  the  numerous 
temples,  the  multitudes  who  still  make  pilgrimages, — all  these 
things  will  be  appealed  to  as  proofs  that  the  masses  are  believers, 
whatever  the  intellectual  classes  may  say.  In  any  case,  Japanese 
irreligion  differs  favourably  from  the  utterly  blank  irreligion  that 
is  flaunted  in  the  modern  West.  Though  they  pray  little  and 
make  light  of  supernatural  dogma,  the  religion  of  the  family — 
filial  piety — binds  them  down  in  truly  sacred  bonds.  The  most 
materialistic  Japanese  would  shrink  with  horror  from  neglect  of 
his  father's  grave,  and  of  the  rites  prescribed  by  usage  for  the 
anniversaries  of  a  father's  or  other  near  kinsman's  death.  Though 
unmindful  of  any  future  for  himself,  he  nevertheless,  by  a  happy 
inconsistency,  acts  as  if  the  dead  needed  his  care.  This  state 
of  things  is  not  confined  to  Japan,  but  characterises  the  whole 
Far  East,  the  whole  Chinese  world.  Furthermore — for  we  have 
no  pet  theory  to  prove,  but  are  inclined  rather  to  view  con- 
tradiction as  of  the  very  essence  of  the  facts  of  life — it   may    be 


410  Religion. 

alleged,  and  alleged  truly,  that  the  Japanese  sometimes  contribute 
large  sums  and  make  considerable  sacrifices  for  pious  ends.  For 
example,  no  less  than  1,200,000  yen  were  subscribed  in  six 
provinces  alone  for  the  benefit  of  the  Nishi  Hongwanji  temple 
at  Kyoto  during  the  year  1900.  On  other  occasions,  not  only 
has  money  been  forthcoming  in  abundance  for  the  rearing  of 
temples  of  the  favourite  Monto  sect,  but  men  have  given  their 
own  manual  labour  to  the  task,  as  something  more  personal  than 
mere  silver  and  gold.  They  have  even  cut  off  their  queues,  and 
the  women  have  cut  off  their  tresses,  wherewith  to  make  hawsers 
to  lift  into  place  the  timbers  of  the  sacred  edifice.  We  imagine, 
however,  that  such  zealots  belonged  almost  exclusively  to  the 
peasant  and  artisan  classes.  The  subject  is  a  difficult  one. 
These  (perhaps  inconsistent)  remarks  are  thrown  out  merely  by 
way  of  suggestion,  in  order  to  restrain  Europeans  from  judging 
too  summarily  of  conditions  alien  to  the  whole  trend  of  their 
own  experience. 

It  has  often  been  alleged  of  late  that  patriotism  and  loyalty 
to  the  sacred,  heaven-descended  Mikado  amount  to  a  religion  in 
Japan.  If  we  are  to  accept  this  statement,  one  important  qualifica- 
tion must  be  made,  which  is  that  the  fervour  of  patriotism  and 
loyalty  to  the  throne,  which  we  see  to-day  at  a  white  heat,  is  no 
legacy  from  a  hoary  antiquity,  but  a  quite  recent  development, — 
one  of  the  many  indirect  results  of  the  Europeanisation  of 
Japanese  institutions,  as  already  hinted  on  page  8.  It  is  no 
ingrained  racial  characteristic ;  it  is  a  phase,  comparable  in  some 
ways  to  the  Puritan  fervour  which  blazed  up  in  England  two  or 
three  centuries  ago,  and  for  a  season  moulded  everything  to  its 
own  temper.  Like  the  stern  enthusiasm  of  Cromwell's  Ironsides, 
like  the  fiery  zeal  of  the  French  revolutionary  hosts,  like  all 
partly  moral,  partly  political  enthusiasms,  it  arms  its  votaries,  and 
in  fact  the  whole  nation,  with  well-nigh  irresistible  might  for  the 
time  being.  It  is  a  highly  interesting  phenomenon,— admirable 
in  the  fearless  self-abnegation  which  it    inspires,  grotesque  in  the 


Roads.  4  1 1 

misrepresentations  of  history  and  even  of  patent  contemporary 
facts  on  which  it  partly  rests,  vastly  important  in  the  concrete 
results  which  it  achieves.  New  Japan  could  never  have  risen 
and  expanded  as  she  has  done  without  some  ideal  to  beckon  her 
onwards ;  and  this  Imperialistic  ideal  was  the  only  one  within 
reach.  It  has  been  the  lever  that  has  raised  her  from  Oriental 
impotence  to  her  present  rank  among  the  great  powers  of  the 
world.  Whether  it  should  be  called  a  religion  is  a  mere  question 
of  how  we  may  choose  to  define  that  word.  To  the  present 
writer,  the  term  "  ideal  '■:  seems  less  open  to  misconstruction. 

(See  also  Articles  on  Buddhism,  History  and  Mythology, 
Mission's,  and  Shinto.) 

Book   recommended.      Gulick's    Evolution    of   the    Japanese,    passim,    especially 
Chaps.  XXV— XXVIII. 

Roads.  Several  of  the  chief  highways  of  Japan  are  extremely 
ancient.  Such  are  some  of  the  roads  near  Kyoto,  and  the  Naka- 
sendo  running  the  whole  way  from  Kyoto  to  Eastern  Japan. 
The  most  celebrated  road  of  more  recent  origin,  though  itself 
far  from  modern,  is  the  Tokaido,  along  which  the  Daimyos  of 
the  western  provinces  used  to  travel  with  their  splendid  retinues 
to  the  Shogun's  court  at  Yedo.  The  Oshu  Kaido  leading  north, 
and  the  Reiheishi  Kaido  leading  to  Nikko,  are  other  great  historic 
roads.  Many  roads  in  Japan  are  lined  with  tall  cryptomerias 
and  other  trees.  Shortly  after  the  introduction  of  telegraphy  into 
the  country,  the  Japanese  began  to  hew  down  these  monumental 
trees  in  their  zeal  for  what  they  believed  to  be  civilisation.  The 
telegraph-poles  would,  they  thought,  show  to  much  better  advan- 
tage without  such  old-fashioned  companions.  A  howl  from  the 
foreign  press  of  Yokohama  fortunately  brought  the  official  Goths 
to  their  senses,  and  after  the  Tokaido  had  been  partially  denuded, 
the  remaining  avenues  were  spared. 

In  too  many  of  the  newly  built  roads,  though  the  engineering 
selection  may  be  good,  the  execution  is  bad.  Roads  are  made  of 
clay  and  dirt  only.  They  run  over  artificial  embankments  sup- 
ported by  mud  foundations,  there  is  no  sufficient  provision  made 


4 1 2  Rowing. 

for  carrying  off  water,  and  the  gradient  of  the  hillside  along  which 
the  road  itself  is  carried  is  left  much  too  steep.  Holes,  ruts, 
and  landslips  often  attended  with  loss  of  life,  are  the  result. 
There  is  no  idea  of  macadamising.  As  for  mending,  that  is  done 
by  cart-loads  of  stones  or  earth,  which  effectually  supply  travellers 
with  dust  during  the  dry  weather  and  a  slough  of  despond 
whenever  it  rains.  Sometimes  twigs  of  trees  and  even  old  cast- 
off  straw  sandals  are  utilised  as  materials  for  road-mending.  In 
Tokyo  itself,  the  capital  of  the  empire,  the  roads  are  a  scandal. 
Down  to  the  present  day  they  continue  to  be  there  made  with 
block-stone  foundations,  on  which  are  poured  layers  of  round 
pebbles  and  earth  or  fine  sand.  The  cruel  labour  entailed  on 
jinrikisha-men  by  such  a  system  may  be  imagined.  Something, 
no  doubt,  should  be  put  to  the  account  of  the  loose  volcanic  soil 
of  the  great  Tokyo  plain  and  of  Eastern  Japan  generally,  which 
does  not  lend  itself  easily  to  good  road-building.  It  is  in  the 
province  of  Ise,  in  some  of  the  larger  islands  of  the  Inland  Sea, 
and  along  the  shores  of  Take  Biwa,  where  nature  provides  first- 
rate  material  in  the  shape  of  disintegrated  granite,  that  the  best 
highways  are  to  be  found. 

During  the  years  1880-90,  an  immense  amount  of  money  was 
spent  in  opening  up  mountain  districts  by  means  of  new  roads, 
bridges,  and  viaducts.  But  as  the  development  of  the  railway 
system  almost  simultaneously  drew  traffic  away  to  other  parts, 
and  as  the  roads  themselves  were  not  calculated  to  withstand 
the  rigour  of  the  climate,  and,  above  all,  were  not  really  needed 
by  the  scanty  peasant  population,  many  have  disappeared  leaving 
not  a  trace  behind,  while  in  other  cases  the  narrow  but  permanent 
ancient  track  is  preferred,  because  shorter.  The  once  noted  road 
over  the  Harinoki  Pass  and  that  from  Aizu  to  Shiobara  may  be 
adduced  as  instances. 

Rowing.  A  discussion  was  carried  on  some  years  ago  in 
the  local  press  concerning  the  respective  merits  of  the  Japanese  and 
European  styles  of  rowing.     The  pros  and  cons  are  as  follows  : — 


Rowing".  413 

PRO. 

"  The  Japanese  method  of  rowing  is  entirely  different  from 
ours.  We  row  with  our  oars  at  right  angles  to  the  side  of  the 
boat,  while  we  are  seated.  The  Japanese  oars  are  almost  parallel 
to  the  side  of  the  boat,  and  they  row  standing  with  their  faces 
to  the  side.  The  movement  is  different  also.  We  lift  our  oars 
from  the  water  after  each  stroke.  The  Japanese  oar  is  always 
submerged,  and  the  oarsman  moves  it  backward  and  forward 
with  a  sculling  motion.  There  is  an  oar  also  at  the  stern  of 
the  boat,  as  well  as  on  the  sides.  In  our  style  of  rowing,  we 
exert  our  force  only  from  the  waist  up,  and  at  every  stroke  must 
exert  motion  out  of  the  water  with  our  oar  to  secure  another 
hold  on  the  water.  The  Japanese  bring  into  action  all  their 
muscles  from  the  feet  up ;  and  as  there  is  no  removal  of  the 
oar  from  the  water,  there  is  no  loss   of  the   power  they  exert.'** 

CONTRA. 

"  Putting  the  Japanese  and  foreign  methods  of  rowing  into 
comparison,  full  credit  is  due  to  the  Japanese  method  of  row- 
ing (or  yidoing  f ),  for  its  affording  the  most  complete  bodily 
exercise.  As  Professor  Bell  says,  every  muscle  from  the  feet 
up  comes  into  action.  Another  instance  where  yuloing  comes 
in  practically  and  usefully  is  in  passing  narrow  passages,  when 
a  Japanese  boat  {sampan)  can  continue  to  be  propelled  forward, 
while  the  crew  of  a  gig  would  probably  have  to  shift  oars.  Its 
superiority  or  advantage  over  the  foreign  way  of  rowing,  in  any 
other  direction,  I,  however,  venture  to  question. 

Speed. — Taking  a  pilot  sampan  as  an  example  with  six  good 
sailors,  a  speed  at  the  rate  of  4  to  4J  knots  an  hour  can  be 
obtained,  while  a  well-manned  six-oared  gig  can  do  5  j-  to  6  knots 
without  much  trouble.  Besides,  the  latter  can  easily  keep  up 
that  speed  for  an  hour  or  more,  while  4^  knots  yuloing  for  that 

*  Quoted  from  Dr.  Bell,  as  reported  in  the  "  Yorozu  Choko"  newspaper,  Tokyo,  17th 
February,  1S99. 

t  From  the  Chinese  i&itl  the  Chinese  and  Japanese  method  of  rowing  being  iden- 
tical, owing  to  the  Japanese  having  borrowed  from  China,  as  usual. 


4 1 4  Rowing. 

length  of  time  would  hardly  be  possible,  because  the  exertion  in 
yuloing  is  very  much  greater  than  in  rowing,  and  this  for  the 
very  reason  that  the  yulo  being  always  submerged,  every  move- 
ment is  an  exertion,  and  swinging  oar  through  the  air  after  each 
stroke  gives  the  oarsman  a  rest.  Rowing  on  fixed  seats  means 
work  for  the  arms  and  the  back,  which  little  affects  the  lungs ; 
yuloing  is  as  fatiguing  as  rowing  on  sliding  seats.  The  heavier 
and  more  clumsy  build  of  a  Japanese  boat  does  not  account 
for  this  difference  in  speed. 

11  Stability  of  the  boat. — In  smooth  water  one  man  yuloing  creates 
a  most  disagreeable,  wobbling,  side-way  motion  for  passengers. 
A  sampan  manned  on  both  sides  goes  more  steadily,  but  yet 
there  is  not  the  perfect  steadiness  of  a  gig.  In  rough  water  it 
occurs  to  the  most  skilful  of  Japanese  oarsmen  that  the  yulo  shifts 
off  the  pin ;  and  putting  it  into  position  again  is  not  always  easy 
in  a  rough  sea,  especially  as  yulos  are  long,  and  necessarily  made 
of  strong  and  heavy  wood.  A  good  gig-oarsman  will  never  lose 
his  oar,  and  if  it  by  mischance  should  jump  out  of  the  rowlock, 
it  is  easily  fetched  in  again.  Moreover,  it  stands  to  reason  that 
men  sitting  down  in  a  boat  will  balance  a  boat  better  than  men 
standing  up,  as  is  the  case  in  yuloing. 

"Resistance  to  wind. — It  is  needless  to  point  out  that  men  sitting 
offer  less  resistance  than  men  standing  in  a  boat."* 


So  far  the  discussion  on  Japanese  rowing.  In  the  north,  among 
the  Ainos,  may  be  seen  a  style  of  rowing  quaint  indeed.  The 
boatman  uses  his  two  oars,  not  together,  but  alternately ;  or  if 
there  be  more  than  one  rower,  those  on  the  right  pull  while 
those  on  the  left  raise  their  oars,  and  vice  versa,  so  that  the  boat 
goes  sidling  along  like  a  sailing-craft  perpetually  tacking.  It  is 
hardly  conceivable  how  so  absurd  a  method  can  have  maintained 
itself  in  use,  as  it  apparently  has  from  time  immemorial. 

*  Quoted  from  the  "Japan  Herald,"  February,  1899. 


Samurai. 


4i5 


Sake.  No  appropriate  European  name  exists  for  this  favourite 
intoxicant.  Both  "rice-beer''  and  "rice-brandy,"  by  which  the 
word  has  sometimes  been  translated,  give  a  false  idea  of  the 
thing.  Sake  is  obtained  from  fermented  rice  by  a  complicated 
process,  which  can  only  be  carried  out  during  the  winter,  and 
it  contains  from  eleven  to  fourteen  per  cent  of  alcohol.  Curiously 
enough,  European  heads  seem  to  be  affected  by  it  much  less 
easily  than  the  Japanese  themselves  are ;  but  it  is  unwise  to 
indulge  in  sake  and  wine  at  the  same  repast.  A  very  strong 
variety  called  shbchu,  which  is  distilled  from  the  dregs,  contains 
from  twenty  to  fifty  per  cent  of  alcohol.  Another  kind,  called 
mirin,  is  more  of  a  liqueur. 

Book  recommended.  The  Chemistry  of  Sake-brewing,  published  as  one  of  the 
"  Memoirs  of  the  Science  Department  of  the  Imperial  University." 

Salutations.  The  only  native  Japanese  salutation  is  the  bow, 
which  often  amounts  to  a  prostration  wherein  the  forehead  touches 
the  ground.  Hand-shaking  was  unknown  till  a  few  years  ago, 
and  is  little  practised  even  now, — a  proof  of  Japanese  good  sense, 
especially  in  hot  weather.  As  for  kissing,  that  is  tabooed  as 
utterly  immodest   and  revolting. 

Samurai.  In  the  early  Middle  Ages — say,  before  the  twelfth 
century — the  soldiers  of  the  Mikado's  palace  were  said  to  samurau, 
that  is,  "  be  on  guard "  there.  But  when  feudalism  came  in, 
the  word  Samurai  was  taken  to  denote  the  entire  warrior  class. 
"Warriors,"  "the  military  class,"  "the  gentry,"  are  perhaps  the 
best  English  renderings  of  the  word  ;  for  it  was  of  the  essence 
of  Old  Japan  that  all  gentlemen  must  be  soldiers,  and  all 
soldiers  gentlemen. 

'  The  training,  the  occupations,  the  code  of  honour,  the  whole 
mental  atmosphere  of  the  Samurai  exhibited  a  striking  similarity 
to  those  of  our  own  nobility  and  gentry  during  the  Middle  Ages. 
With  them,  as  with  us,  obedience  unquestioning  and  enthusiastic 
was  yielded    to   feudal    superiors,    to    monarchs    ruling    by    right 


4 1 6  Samurai. 

divine, — obedience  even  unto  death.  With  them,  as  with  us,  it 
was  birth  and  breeding  that  counted,  not  money.  The  Samurai's 
word  was  his  bond,  and  he  was  taught  to  be  gentle  as  well  as 
brave.  Doubtless,  some  well-marked  shades  of  local  colour  dis- 
tinguished Japanese  chivalry  from  that  of  the  West.  The  practice 
of  suicide  (harakiri)  as  part  of  the  code  of  honour,  where  our 
own  ancestors  had  the  duel,  at  once  occurs  to  the  mind  as  a 
special  feature.  Even  more  so  does  the  absence  of  gallantry 
towards  the  fair  sex.  No  Japanese  Ariosto  would  have  dreamt 
of  beginning  his  epic  of  chivalry  with  the  words 

Le  donne,  i  cavalier,  l'arme,  gli  amori, 
Le  cortesie,  l'audaci  imprese  io  canto. 

"  God  and  the  ladies ! "  was  the  motto  of  the  European 
knight.  But  neither  God  nor  the  ladies  inspired  any  enthusiasm 
in  the  Samurai's  breast.  Still,  it  is  impossible  not  to  see  that, 
despite  varying  details,  the  same  general  trend  of  conditions 
produced  kindred  results  on  the  two  opposite  sides  of  the  globe. 
It  is  to  be  observed,  too,  that  in  Japan  as  in  Europe  the  living 
reality  of  the  earlier  chivalry  faded  at  last,  under  a  centralised 
absolutism,  into  pageant  and  etiquette,  though  in  the  East  as  in 
the  West  a  strong  tinge  of  chivalrous  feeling  has  survived  in  the 
upper  class  even  to  the  present  day. 

The  Japanese  craze  for  altering  names  was  exemplified  in  1878, 
by  the  change  of  the  historical  and  genuinely  native  word  Samu- 
rai to  that  of  Shizoku,  a  Chinese  term  of  precisely  the  same  mean- 
ing. Under  this  new  designation,  the  Samurai  still  continue  to 
exist,  as  one  of  the  three  classes  into  which  Japanese  society  is 
divided. 

In  the  feudal  times,  which  lasted  till  A.  D.  1 871,  the  Samurai 
lived  in  his  Daimyo's  castle,  attended  his  Daimyo  on  all 
occasions,  and  received  from  him  rations  for  himself  and  his 
family, — rations  which  were  calculated  in  so  many  koku,  that  is, 
bags  of  rice,  annually.  One  of  the  early  measures  of  the  new 
Imperial  administration  was  to  commute  these  incomes  for  a  lump 
sum,    to    be   paid    in    government    bonds.     Optional    at    first,  in 


Shimo-bashira.  4 1 7 

1873,  the  commutation  was  rendered  obligatory  by  a  second 
edict  published  in  1876.  Since  that  time,  many  of  the  Samurai 
— unaccustomed  as  they  had  been  to  business  and  to  the  duty  of 
working  for  their  livelihood — have  fallen  into  great  misery.  The 
more  clever  and  ambitious,  on  the  other  hand,  practically 
constitute  the  governing  class  of  the  country  at  the  present  day, 
their  former  lords  and  masters,  the  Daimyos,  having  lagged 
behind  in  the  race,  and  there  being  still  a  sufficient  remnant  of 
aristocratic  spirit  to  render  the  rise  of  a  plebeian  to  any  position 
of  importance  a  matter  of  considerable  difficulty. 

Books  recommended.  Almost  every  older  work  on  Japan  necessarily  mentions 
the  Samurai  at  every  turn.  See  more  particularly  Mitford's  Tales  of  Old  Jaj>an  for  some 
of  their  famous  feats  of  arms,  McClatchie's  Feudal  Mansions  of  Yedo  ("Asiatic  Transac- 
tions," Vol.  VII.)  for  the  houses  they  inhabited,  Nitobe's  Bushido  for  a  theoretical  discus- 
sion of  Japanese  chivalry  and  its  moral  code.  The  value  of  this  last  book,  which  is  written 
by  a  Japanese  in  excellent  English,  is  considerably  impaired  by  the  fact  that  the  author 
has  taken,  not  mediaeval  Europe,  but  modern  America  as  his  standard  of  comparison 
with  feudal  Japan.  The  contrast  between  Eastern  and  Western  social  evolution,  which 
in  reality  is  chiefly  one  of  time  (Japan  having  developed  along  the  same  lines  as 
Europe,  but  more  slowly),  is    thus  made  to  figure  as  one  of  place  and  race. 

Sculpture.     See  Carving. 

Shimo-bashira.  The  peculiar  phenomenon  known  by  this 
name,  which  means  literally  "frost-pillars,"  has  provoked  some 
curiosity  among  the  resident  learned.  These  frost-pillars  are 
first  seen  after  a  bright  cold  night  in  early  winter,  and  always 
in  damp,  friable  soil,  the  fine  uppermost  layer  of  which  is  borne 
upwards  on  their  surface,  so  that  one  may  fail  to  notice  them 
until,  in  walking,  the  foot  crushes  down  two  or  three  inches 
— sometimes  even  five  or  six  inches — into  what  had  looked  like 
firm  ground ;  but  often  they  cling  to  the  high  sides  of  shady 
lanes.  Examined  singly,  they  present  the  appearance  of  tiny 
hexagonal  columns,  or  rather  tubes,  of  ice;  but  they  generally 
occur  in  clumps  or  bundles  half  melted  together,  and  the  longer 
ones  sometimes  curl  over  like  shavings.  Sometimes  joints  can 
be  perceived  in  them,  and  at  each  joint  a  minute  particle  of 
earth.  The  late  Dr.  Gottfried  Wagener  explained  the  pheno- 
menon as  follows: — "When  the  surface  of  damp  soil,    in  which 


4 1 8  Shinto. 

the  water  is  divided  into  slender  canals,  cools  at  night  by  radiation, 
the  water  at  the  exits  of  the  canals  hardens  into  ice.  This  ice 
then  assists  the  hardening  of  the  adjacent  particles  of  water,  which 
also  congeal  before  the  soil  itself  has  fallen  to  freezing-point,  and 
before  therefore  the  water  can  freeze  fast  to  the  particles  of  earth. 
The  ice  then  extends  in  the  direction  of  least  resistance,  that  is, 
upwards.  In  this  manner,  one  molecule  of  ice  after  another 
pushes  its  way  out  of  the  slender  canals, — a  process  which  also 
explains  the  thread-like  structure  of  the  frost-pillars.  These  push 
up  with  them,  in  their  growth,  the  minute  particles  of  earth  which 
lie  between  their  extremities,  and  which  also  are  cooled  by  radia- 
tion and  stick  to  the  ice.  They  form  a  crust  which  itself  protects 
the  underlying  soil  against  further  radiation.  This  accounts  for  the 
fact  that  the  soil  on  which  the  frost-pillars  stand,  far  from  being 
frozen,  is  so  soft  and  wet  that  a  thin  cane  may  easily  be  stuck 
deep  into  it.  That  the  ice  needles  really  grow  from  below  and 
force  their  way  up  out  of  the  soil,  is  proved  by  the  circumstance 
that  in  shady  places,  where  they  are  not  melted  during  the  day 
and  can  therefore  continue  to  grow  for  several  nights  in  succes- 
sion, several  sharply  denned  thin  layers  of  earthy  particles  may 
be  distinguished  in  the  pillars.  Frost-pillars  are  also  formed 
under  a  thin  covering  of  snow,  when  the  upper  surface  of  this 
latter  melts  during  the  day-time.  The  water  then  penetrates 
into  the  lower  layer  of  snow,  and  thence  into  the  soil.  The 
thin  snow-covering  freezes  during  the  night,  and  the  hardening 
process,  as  above  described,  proceeds  on  into  the  canals  below 
ground." 

So  far  as  our  experience  goes,  frost-pillars,  as  here  described, 
are  unknown  in  Europe.  An  English  gentleman  long  resident  in 
Virginia  tells  us,  however,  that  they  occur  there,  going  by  the 
local  name  of  "frost-flowers." 

Book  recommended.     Our   quotation   is  from  a  short  paper  by  Dr.  Wagener,   in 
Part  12  of  the  German  Asiatic  Transactions. 

Shinto,  which  means  literally  "the  Way  of  the  Gods,"  is 
the    name    given    to    the    mythology    and    vague    ancestor    and 


Shinto.  4 1 9 

nature-worship  which  preceded  the  introduction  of  Buddhism 
into  Japan,  and  which  continues  to  exist  in  a  modified 
form.  Referring  the  reader  to  the  Article  on  History  and 
Mythology  for  a  sketch  of  the  Shinto  pantheon,  we  would  here 
draw  attention  to  the  fact  that  Shinto,  so  often  spoken  of  as  a 
religion,  is  hardly  entitled  to  that  name  even  in  the  opinion  of 
those  who,  acting  as  its  official  mouthpieces  to-day,  desire  to 
maintain  it  as  a  patriotic  institution.  It  has  no  set  of  dogmas, 
no  sacred  book,  no  moral  code.  The  absence  of  a  moral  code 
is  accounted  for,  in  the  writings  of  native  commentators,  by  the 
innate  perfection  of  Japanese  humanity,  which  obviates  the 
necessity  for  such  outward  props.  It  is  only  outcasts,  like  the 
Chinese  and  Western  nations,  whose  natural  depravity  renders 
the  occasional  appearance  of  sages  and  reformers  necessary  ;  and 
even  with  this  assistance,  all  foreign  nations  continue  to  wallow 
in  a  mire  of  ignorance,  guilt,  and  disobedience  towards  the 
heaven-descended,  de  jure  monarch  of  the  universe — the  Mikado 
of  Japan. 

It  is  necessary,  however,  to  distinguish  three  periods  in  the 
evolution  of  Shint5.  During  the  first  of  these — roughly  speaking, 
down  to  A.D.  550 — the  Japanese  had  no  notion  of  religion  as  a 
separate  institution.  To  pay  homage  to  the  gods,  that  is,  to  the 
departed  ancestors  of  the  Imperial  family,  and  to  the  manes  of 
other  great  men,  was  a  usage  springing  from  the  same  mental 
soil  as  that  which  produced  passive  obedience  to,  and  worship 
of,  the  living  Mikado.  Besides  this,  there  were  prayers  to 
the  wind-gods,  to  the  god  of  fire,  to  the  god  of  pestilence, 
to  the  goddess  of  food,  and  to  deities  presiding  over  the 
saucepan,  the  cauldron,  the  gate,  and  the  kitchen.  There  were 
also  purifications  for  wrong-doing,  as  there  were  for  bodily 
defilement,  such,  for  instance,  as  contact  with  a  corpse.  The 
purifying  element  was  water.  But  there  was  not  even  a  shadowy 
idea  of  any  code  of  ethics  or  any  systematisation  of  the  simple 
notions  of  the  people  concerning  things  unseen.  There  was 
neither  heaven  nor   hell, — only    a   kind    of  neutral-tinted  Hades. 


420  Shinto. 

Some  of  the  gods  were  good,  some  were  bad  ;  nor  was  the  line 
between  men  and  gods  at  all  clearly  drawn.  There  was,  how- 
ever, a  rude  sort  of  priesthood,  each  priest  being  charged  with 
the  service  of  some  particular  local  god,  but  not  with  preaching 
to  the  people.  One  of  the  virgin  daughters  of  the  Mikado 
always  dwelt  at  the  ancient  shrine  of  Ise,  keeping  watch  over 
the  mirror,  the  sword,  and  the  jewel,  which  he  had  inherited 
from  his  ancestress,  Ama-terasu,  Goddess  of  the  Sun.  Shinto 
may  be  said,  in  this  its  first  phase,  to  have  been  a  set  of 
ceremonies  as  much  political  as  religious.  Whether  and  how 
far,  even  at  that  remote  period,  unacknowledged  spiritual  influences 
emanating  from  China  had  made  themselves  felt,  is  a  curious 
question.  The  coincidence  of  a  few  myths,  together  with  other 
scattered  indications,  seem  to  point  in  that  direction.  The 
Chinese  tincture  of  the  version  of  the  mythology  and  legendary 
history  preserved  in  the  Nihongi  is  obvious  to  the  least  critical 
reader,  and  shows  that,  in  the  eighth  century  at  any  rate,  the  idea 
of  endeavouring  to  preserve  the  national  traditions  free  from 
foreign  influence  was  not  present  to  the  Japanese  mind. 

By  the  introduction  of  Buddhism  in  the  middle  of  the  sixth 
century  after  Christ,  the  second  period  of  the  existence  of  Shinto 
was  inaugurated,  and  further  growth  in  the  direction  of  a  religion 
was  stopped.  The  metaphysics  of  Buddhism  were  far  too  pro- 
found, its  ritual  far  too  gorgeous,  its  moral  code  far  too  exalted, 
for  the  puny  fabric  of  Shinto  to  offer  any  effective  resistance. 
All  that  there  was  of  religious  feeling  in  the  nation  went  over  to 
the  enemy.  The  Buddhist  priesthood  diplomatically  received 
the  native  Shinto  gods  in  their  pantheon  as  avatars  of  ancient 
Buddhas,  for  which  reason  many  of  the  Shinto  ceremonies  con- 
nected with  the  Court  were  kept  up,  although  Buddhist  ceremonies 
took  the  first  place  even  in  the  thoughts  of  the  converted  des- 
cendants of  the  sun.  The  Shinto  rituals  (noriio),  previously 
handed  down  by  word  of  mouth,  were  then  first  put  into  written 
shape.  The  term  "  Shinto "  itself  was  also  introduced,  in  order 
to  distinguish    the    old    native    way    of  thinking    from    the    new 


Shinto.  421 

doctrine  imported  from  India ;  for  down  to  that  time,  no  one  had 
hit  on  the  notion  of  including  the  various  fragmentary  legends 
and  local  usages  under  one  general  designation.  But  viewing 
the  matter  broadly,  we  may  say  that  the  second  period  of  Shinto, 
which  lasted  from  about  A.D.  550  to  1700,  was  one  of  dark- 
ness and  decrepitude.  The  various  petty  sects  into  which  it 
then  split  up,  owed  what  little  vitality  they  possessed  to  frag- 
ments of  cabalistic  lore  filched  from  the  baser  sort  of  Buddhism 
and  from  Taoism.  Their  priests  practised  the  arts  of  divination 
and  sorcery.  Only  at  Court  and  at  a  few  great  shrines,  such  as 
those  of  Ise  and  Izumo,  was  a  knowledge  of  Shinto  in  its  native 
simplicity  maintained ;  and  even  there  it  is  doubtful  whether 
changes  did  not  creep  in  with  the  lapse  of  ages.  Most  of  the  Shinto 
temples  throughout  the  country  were  served  by  Buddhist  priests, 
who  introduced  the  architectural  ornaments  and  the  ceremonial 
of  their  own  religion.  Thus  was  formed  Rybbu  Shinto, — a  mixed 
religion  founded  on  a  compromise  between  the  old  creed  and 
the  new, — and  hence  partly  (for  other  causes  have  contributed  to 
produce  the  same  effect)  the  tolerant  ideas  on  theological  subjects 
of  most  Japanese  of  the  middle  and  lower  classes,  who  will  wor- 
ship indifferently  at  the  shrines  of  either  faith. 

The  third  period  in  the  history  of  Shinto  began  about  the 
year  1700,  and  continues  down  to  the  present  day.  It  has  been 
termed  the  period  of  the  "revival  of  pure  Shinto."  During  the 
seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries,  under  the  peaceful  govern- 
ment of  the  Tokugawa  dynasty  of  Shoguns,  the  literati  of  Japan 
turned  their  eyes  backward  on  their  country's  past.  Old 
manuscripts  were  disinterred,  old  histories  and  old  poems  were 
put  into  print,  the  old  language  was  studied  and  imitated. 
Soon  the  movement  became  religious  and  political, — above  all, 
patriotic,  not  to  say  chauvinistic.  The  Shogunate  was  frowned  on, 
because  it  had  supplanted  the  autocracy  of  the  heaven-descended 
Mikados.  Buddhism  and  Confucianism  were  sneered  at,  because 
of  their  foreign  origin.  Shinto  gained  by  all  this.  The  great 
scholars  Mabuchi  (1697-1769),  Motoori  (1730-1801),  and  Hirata 


422  Shinto. 

(1776- 1 843),  devoted  themselves  to  a  religious  propaganda, — if 
that  can  be  called  a  religion  which  sets  out  from  the  principle 
that  the  only  two  things  needful  are  to  follow  one's  natural 
impulses  and  to  obey  the  Mikado.  This  order  of  ideas  triumph- 
ed for  a  moment  in  the  revolution  of  1868.  Buddhism  was 
disestablished  and  disendowed,  and  Shinto  was  installed  as  the 
only  state  religion,  the  Council  for  Spiritual  Affairs  being  given 
equal  rank  with  the  Council  of  State,  which  latter  controlled 
things  temporal.  At  the  same  time  thousands  of  temples,  formerly 
Buddhist  or  Rybbu-Shinto,  were,  as  the  phrase  went,  "  purified," 
that  is,  stripped  of  their  Buddhist  ornaments,  and  handed  over 
to  Shinto  keeping.  But  as  Shinto  had  no  root  in  itself, — being 
a  thing  too  empty  and  jejune  to  influence  the  hearts  of  men, — 
Buddhism  soon  rallied.  The  Council  for  Spiritual  Affairs  was 
reduced  to  the  rank  of  a  department,  the  department  to  a  bureau, 
the  bureau  to  a  sub-bureau.  The  whole  thing  is  now  a  mere 
shadow,  though  Shinto  is  still  in  so  far  the  official  cult  that 
certain  temples  are  maintained  out  of  public  moneys,  and  that  the 
attendance  of  certain  officials  is  required  from  time  to  time  at  cere- 
monies of  a  semi-religious,  semi-courtly  nature.  Hard  pressed  to 
establish  their  raison  d'etre  and  retain  a  little  popularity,  the 
priests  have  taken  to  selling  cheap  prints  of  religious  subjects, 
after  the  fashion  of  their  Buddhist  rivals.  Some  private  scholars, 
too — Dr.  Inoue  Tetsujiro,  for  example — have  recently  attempted 
to  infuse  new  life  into  Shinto  by  decking  it  out  in  ethical  and 
theological  plumes  borrowed  from  abroad.  One  of  these  vision- 
aries, a  Mr.  Sakamoto,  has  urged  the  establishment  of  an 
association  which  should  inculcate,  under  new  Shinto  names,  the 
seven  cardinal  virtues  (Confucian),  the  doctrine  of  cause  and  effect 
(Buddhist),  and  that  of  a  trinity  in  unity  (Christian).  But  of 
course  such  cut  flowers,  having  no  vital  sap  left  in  them,  wither  at 
once.  A  larger  measure  of  success  has  attended  the  establishment 
of  two  new  quasi-Shinto  sects,  the  Tenri-kyo  and  Remmon-kyo, 
which,  while  claiming  to  represent  the  genuine  national  cult, 
mingle   therewith    shreds    of  superstition    borrowed  from  various 


Shinto.  423 

sources,  and  (if  they  are  not  greatly  belied)  an  abundant 
measure  of  licentiousness.  The  founders  of  both  these  sects 
were  ignorant  peasant  women. 

The  lover  of  Japanese  art  will  bear  the  Shinto  revivalists  ill-will 
for  the  ridiculous  "  purification  "  which  has  destroyed  countless 
gems  of  Buddhist  architecture  and  ornament, — not  for  the  sake 
of  a  grand  moral  ideal,  as  with  the  Puritans  of  Europe,  but  for 
an  ideal  immeasurably  inferior  to  Buddhism  itself.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  literary  style  of  their  writings  outshines  anything 
produced  by  the  Buddhists ;  and  their  energy  in  rescuing  the 
old  Japanese  classic  authors  from  neglect  is  worthy  of  all  praise. 

The  Shinto  temple  {yashiro  or  jinjd)  preserves  in  a  slightly 
elaborated  form  the  type  of  the  primeval  Japanese  hut,  differing 
in  this  from  the  Buddhist  temple  (/era),  which  is  of  Chinese  and 
more  remotely  of  Indian  origin.  Details  of  the  names  and  uses 
of  the  various  temple  buildings,  together  with  other  matters,  will 
be  found  in  the  Introduction  to  Murray's  Handbook  for  Japan. 
It  may  suffice  briefly  to  indicate  here  a  means  of  distinguishing 
from  each  other  the  temples  of  the  two  religions.  The  outward 
and  visible  signs  of  Shinto  are, — first,  a  wand  from  which  depend 
strips  of  white  paper  cut  into  little  angular  bunches  (gohei), 
intended  to  represent  the  offerings  of  cloth  which  were  anciently 
tied  to  branches  of  the  sacred  cleyera  tree  at  festival  time  ; 
secondly,  a  peculiar  gateway  called  iorii.  Another  difference  is 
that  the  Shinto  temple  is  thatched,  whereas  the  Buddhist  temple 
is  tiled.  Furthermore,  the  Shinto  temple  is  plain  and  empty, 
while  the  Buddhist  is  highly  decorated  and  filled  with  religious 
properties.     (See  also  Articles  on  Architecture  and  on  Torii.) 

Books  recommended.  Murray^s  Handbook,  just  mentioned,  for  a  brief  resume 
of  the  subject.  The  following  treatises  are  much  more  elaborate: — The  Revival  of  Pure 
Shinto,  by  Sir  Ernest  Satow,  forming  the  Appendix  to  Vol.  Ill;  The  Shinto  Temples  of 
he,  by  the  same,  in  Vol.  II  ;  Ancient  Japanese  Rituals,  by  the  same,  in  Vols.  VII. 
and  IX ;  Ancient  Japanese  Rituals,  by  Dr.  K.  Florenz,  in  Vol.  XXVII ;  Introduction 
to  the  Kojiki,  by  B.  H.  Chamberlain,  forming  the  Supplement  to  Vol.  X.,  and  Tenri-kyo, 
by  Rev.  Dr.  Greene  in  Vol.  XXIII.,  of  the  "  Asiatic  Transactions."—  Occult  Japan,  by 
Percival  Lowell.— A  work  on  Shinto  by  W.  G.  Aston,  which  should  be  authoritative, 
is  in  the  press. 


424  Shipping. 

Shipping.  The  shipping  industry  is  one  of  the  most  important 
in  Japan,  holding  now,  as  it  would  seem  to  have  done  from  time 
immemorial,  a  prominent  place  in  the  commerce  of  the  country. 
The  reason  for  this  is  not  far  to  seek,  being  found  in  Japan's 
insular  position,  her  extensive  sea-board,  and  her  mountainous 
interior.  The  Japanese  take  kindly  to  a  seafaring  life.  During 
the  Middle  Ages,  they  were  distinguished  among  Oriental  nations 
for  their  spirit  of  maritime  enterprise.  Korea,  China,  Formosa, 
even  the  distant  Philippine  Islands,  Cambodia,  and  Siam  saw  the 
Japanese  appear  on  their  coasts,  now  as  peaceful  traders,  now  as 
buccaneers.  The  story  of  one  of  these  buccaneers,  named  Yama- 
da  Nagamasa,  alias  Tenjiku  Hachibei,  who  ended  by  marrying 
a  Siamese  princess  and  becoming  viceroy  of  the  country,  reads 
more  like  a  chapter  from  the  "Arabian  Nights"  than  like  sober 
reality.  It  is  evident,  too,  that  the  Japanese  of  the  early  part  of 
the,  seventeenth  century  were  determined  not  to  be  left  behind 
in  the  art  of  shipbuilding.  The  English  master-mariner  Will 
Adams,  who  came  to  Japan  in  the  year  1600,  built  ships  for 
Ieyasu,  the  then  Shogun,  one  of  which  made  voyages  to  Manila 
and  even  to  Mexico.  Suddenly  all  was  changed.  Alarmed  be- 
yond measure  at  the  progress  of  Catholicism,  and  fearing  that  in 
Japan,  as  elsewhere,  the  Spanish  monk  would  be  followed  by 
the  Spanish  soldier  of  fortune,  Iemitsu,  the  third  Shogun  of  the 
Tokugawa  dynasty,  issued  an  edict  in  the  year  1636,  whereby 
all  foreign  priests  were  expelled  from  the  empire,  foreign  mer- 
chants were  restricted  to  the  two  south-western  ports  of  Nagasaki 
and  Hirado,  and  all  Japanese  subjects  were  forbidden  under  pain 
of  death  to  leave  Japan.  Drastic  measures  were  resorted  to  in 
order  to  enforce  the  terms  of  this  edict,  all  vessels  of  European 
build  and  even  all  large  vessels  of  native  build  were  ordered 
to  be  destroyed,  only  small  junks  sufficient  for  coasting  purposes 
being  allowed  to  be  retained.  This  is  the  style  of  junk  still 
seen  at  the  present  day  in  Japanese  waters.  It  is  distinguished 
by  a  single  square  sail,  which  is  so  awkward  as  to  render  the 
vessel    difficult    to  handle  except  when  running  before  the  wind. 


Shipping.  425 

Japan's  shipping  enterprise  was  crippled  for  over  two  centuries, 
though  the  number  of  coasting  junks  no  doubt  remained  large  ; 
for  the  character  of  the  country  made  communication  by  water 
indispensable. 

When  the  feudal  government  fell  like  a  card  palace,  the  restric- 
tions on  shipbuilding  fell  with  it.  The  new  Imperial  government 
took  a  laudable  interest  in  the  development  of  a  mercantile 
marine  of  foreign  build.  Among  other  measures  adopted  with 
this  end  in  view,  a  regulation  prohibiting  the  construction  of  junks 
of  over  five  hundred  koku*  burthen  may  be  cited  as  one  of  the 
most  efficacious.  Nor  was  everything  left  to  official  initiative. 
Iwasaki  Yatard,  the  celebrated  millionaire,  started  steamers  of 
his  own  somewhere  about  1870;  and  the  company  which  he 
worked  with  the  aid  of  judiciously  selected  European  directors 
and  agents,  European  captains,  and  European  engineers,  soon 
rose,  under  the  name  of  the  Mitsubishif  Mail  Steamship  Com- 
pany, to  be  the  most  important  commercial  undertaking  in  the 
empire.  It  even  influenced  politics ;  for  to  the  facilities  which 
the  Mitsubishi  afforded  for  carrying  troops  at  the  time  of  the 
Satsuma  rebellion,  was  due  in  no  small  measure  the  triumph  of 
the  Imperialists  in  that  their  hour  of  need.  Later  on,  another 
company,  named  the  Kybdo  Un-yu  Kwaisha,  was  formed  to  run 
against  the  Mitsubishi.  But  the  rivalry  between  the  two  proving 
ruinous,  they  were  amalgamated  in  1885,  under  the  name  of  the 
Nippon  Yusen  Kwaisha,  or  Japan  Mail  Steamship  Company. 
This  company  now  ranks  as  one  of  the  principal  steamship 
companies  of  the  world,  and  not  only  trades  between  the  various 
parts  of  the  coast,  but  maintains  regular  services   between  Japan 

♦Article  3  of  the  "Regulations  and  Rules  for  the  Measures  of  Vessels'  Capacity," 
published  in  1888  by  the  Mercantile  Marine  Bureau  of  the  Imperial  Department  of 
Communications,  fixes  the  capacity  of  the  koku,  in  vessels  of  Japanese  build,  as 
equivalent  to  10  cubic  feet.  Whether  this  was  the  precise  value  of  the  maritime  kokti 
in  earlier  times,  we  cannot  say. 

.  t  From  mitsu,  "three"  and  JiisJii,  "the  water  caltrop,"  hence  "lozenge,"  the  leaves 
of  the  caltrop  being  approximately  lozenge-shaped,  and  three  lozenges  having  been 
chosen  as  the  company's  crest. 


426  Shipping. 

and  Europe,  Australia,  British  India,  America,  China,  Siberia, 
and  the  Philippines.  The  Osaka  Shosen  Kwaisha  is  another 
important  private  company,  owning  a  large  fleet  of  vessels 
engaged  in  the  domestic  carrying  trade  and  running  to  Korea, 
Formosa,  and  up  the  Yangtse.  The  Toyb  Risen  Kwaisha  is 
a  third,  which  runs  steamers  to  San  Francisco  and  Hongkong. 
A  score  of  smaller  companies  and  numerous  privately  owned 
vessels  render  the  means  of  travel  and  transit  everywhere 
easy. 

Iwasaki's  keen  enterprising  spirit,  seconded  by  government 
assistance,  greatly  contributed  to  develop  the  country.  Places 
formerly  dependent  on  the  casual  services  of  junks  found  them- 
selves supplied  with  regular  shipping  facilities,  or  were  at  least 
able  to  command  tonnage  at  short  notice.  Methods,  too,  rapidly 
improved.  The  happy-go-lucky  way  of  conducting  the  loading  of 
a  junk,  which  could  afford  to  wait  an  indefinite  period  for  a  cargo, 
necessarily  yielded  to  prompt  shipment  at  the  time  stipulated. 
The  China  war  of  1894-5  gave  a  great  impetus  to  shipping. 
Many  private  steamers  were  engaged  as  transports,  and  others 
bought  to  supply  their  place.  Then  followed  laws  for  the  en- 
couragement of  navigation  and  shipbuilding,  also  the  granting 
of  liberal  subsidies,  with  the  result  that  Japanese  steamers — as 
indicated  above — now  compete  with  the  foreign  carriers  on  the 
chief  lines  to  and  from  Japan.  The  outlay  has  been  considerable 
for  a  country  which  is  not  rich ;  yet  it  may  be  regarded  as  a 
sound  investment,  because  calculated  to  pay  in  the  long  run. 
It  has  already  succeeded  in  ousting  foreign  competition  from 
certain  fields,  from  the  Formosa  coast,  for  instance,  where  British 
shipping,  so  late  as  1896,  amounted  to  over  86  per  cent  of 
the  whole  steam  tonnage  entered  from  abroad,  but  where  the 
Osaka  Shosen  Kwaisha  now  reigns  supreme.  Great  attention, 
too,  has  been  devoted  to  the  construction  of  repairing  and 
building-yards  and   of  dry   docks. 

So  far  the  domestic  trade.  Japan  is  no  less  well-supplied  with 
foreign    tonnage,    thanks    partly    to    the    sudden    and    enormous 


Shogun.  427 

increase  in  the  number  of  tourists  visiting  these  shores.  The 
P.  and  0.  Company,  the  Messageries  Maritimes,  and  the  Nord- 
deutscher  Lloyd  all  run  steamers  regularly  throughout  the  year 
to  Europe,  to  say  nothing  of  several  regular  cargo  lines  and 
numerous  "  tramp "  steamers.  Across  the  Pacific  Ocean,  com- 
munication is  kept  up  by  the  Occidental  and  Oriental  Company 
and  the  Pacific  Mail  running  to  San  Francisco,  by  the  Canadian 
Pacific  Company,  whose  destination  is  Vancouver,  and  by  lines 
to  Seattle,  Tacoma,  and  Portland. 

Shogun.  The  title  of  Shogun,  which  means  literally  "  general- 
issimo," and  which  was  destined  to  play  such  a  momentous 
part  in  Japanese  history,  seems  to  have  been  first  used  in  A.D. 
813,  when  one  Watamaro  was  appointed  Sei-i  Tai-Shogun,  that 
is,  "Barbarian-subduing  Generalissimo,"  to  wage  war  against 
the  Ainos  in  the  north  of  the  empire.  The  title  was  employed 
afterwards  in  similar  cases  from  time  to  time.  But  Yoritomo,  at 
the  end  of  the  twelfth  century,  was  the  first  of  these  generalissimos 
to  make  himself  also,  so  to  say,  Mayor  of  the  Palace,  and  in 
effect  ruler  of  the  land.  From  that  time  forward,  various  dynasties 
of  Shoguns  succeeded  each  other  throughout  the  Middle  Ages 
and  down  to  our  own  days.  The  greatest  of  these  families  were 
the  Ashikaga  (A.D.  1336-15 70)  and  the  Tokugawa  (A.D.  1603- 
1867).  A  concatenation  of  circumstances,  partly  political,  partly 
religious,  partly  literary,  led  to  the  abolition  of  the  Shogunate 
in  the  year  1868.  The  Mikado  then  stepped  forth  again,  to 
govern  as  well  as  reign,  after  an  eclipse  of  well-nigh  seven 
hundred  years. 

It  has  already  been  stated  on  page  236  that  the  name  of  the 
last  of  the  Shoguns  was  Hitotsu-bashi.  For  him  to  have  com- 
mitted harakiri  when  the  crash  came  (which  was  what  many  of 
his  retainers  expected),  would  have  formed  a  dignified  and 
memorable  end  to  the  Japanese  feudal  system.  He  preferred 
to  live.  After  spending  many  years  in  retirement  in  a  pro- 
vincial town,  he  removed    to    the    capital ;    and   still  later,  when 


428  Shooting. 

he  was  admitted  to  some  function  at  the  Imperial  Court,  his 
appearance  there  scarcely  evoked  an  expression  of  surprise.  To 
readers  brought  up  in  Europe,  with  its  Carlists,  its  Bourbons,  in 
old  days  its  Stuarts,  at  all  times  its  irreconcilables  of  various 
names  and  degrees,  it  would  seem  but  natural  that  a  party 
favouring  the  restoration  of  the  Shogunate  should  linger  on  to 
embarrass  the  new  regime.  This  is  not  the  case.  Far-Eastern 
minds  view  these  matters  differently.  Being  matter-of-fact  by 
nature,  they  accept  the  logic  of  events  more  easily  and  more 
absolutely  than  we  do.  In  this  part  of  the  world,  a  lost  cause  does 
not  simply  fall  : — it  ceases  to  exist. 

The  practice  of  most  modern  writers  on  Japanese  subjects — 
foreigners  as  well  as  natives — is  to  treat  the  Shoguns  as  usurpers. 
But  surely  this  is  a  highly  unphilosophical  way  of  reading  history. 
It  is  not  even  formally  correct,  seeing  that  the  Shoguns  obtained 
investiture  from  the  Court  of  Kyoto  as  regularly  as  ministers  of 
state  have  obtained  their  commissions  in  later  times.  We  cannot 
undertake  here  to  go  into  the  causes  that  produced  Japanese 
feudalism,  with  the  Shoguns  at  its  head.  But  if  seven  centuries 
of  possession  do  not  consitute  a  legal  title,  how  many  of  the 
governments  at  present  existing  in  the  world  are  legitimate? 
And  what  test  is  there,  or  can  there  be,  of  the  legitimacy  of  any 
government  except  the  general  acquiescence  of  the  governed  ? 

Book  recommended.  Brinkley's  Japan  and  China,  Vol.  IV.  Chap.  II.,  especially 
p.  33  et  seq.,  for  curious  account  of  female  officialdom  at  the  Shogun's  Court. 

Shooting.  No  one  is  advised  to  come  to  Japan  for  sport. 
Deer  and  even  bears  do,  no  doubt,  exist  in  the  northern  island 
of  Yezo ;  pheasants,  snipe,  quail,  wild-duck,  teal,  hares,  and 
other  small  game  in  the  Main  Island,  but  not  in  sufficient 
numbers  to  wander  so  far  afield  for,  seeing  that  Europe  and 
America  offer  superior  attractions.  Shooting  licenses  may  be 
obtained  at  the  prefectural  office  (kencho)  of  the  various  open 
ports,  and  at  the  Tokyo  Fn,  or  city  office,  in  Tokyo.  The  fee 
varies  according  to  the  income   of  the  applicant,  but  practically 


Siebold. 


429 


all  foreigners  likely  to  require  licenses  come  under  the  20  yen 
clause.*  The  shooting  season,  speaking  generally,  lasts  from  the 
15th  October  to  the  15th  April.  These  dates  will  seem  late  to 
English  sportsmen ;  but  it  must  be  remembered  that  the  seasons 
begin  later  in  Japan  than  in  England,  —spring  as  well  as  autumn. 

Siebold.  Philipp  Franz,  Freiherr  von  Siebold  (A.D.  1796— 
1866),  author  of  many  books,  both  in  Latin  and  German,  on  the 
zoology,  botany,  language,  and  bibliography  of  Japan  and  the 
neighbouring  lands,  and  best  known  by  the  magnificently  illustrated 
folio  work  entitled  Nippon,  Archiv  zur  Beschreibung  von  Japan^ 
which  is  in  itself  an  encyclopaedia  of  the  information  concerning 
Japan  which  existed  in  his  day,  came  of  an  old  Bavarian  family. 
Like  Kaempfer  a  century  and  a  half  before  him,  he  judged, 
and  judged  rightly,  that  the  service  of  the  Dutch  East  India 
Company  was  the  royal  road  to  a  knowledge  of  the  then  mysterious 
empire  of  Japan.  Appointed  leader  of  a  scientific  mission  fitted 
out  at  Batavia,  he  landed  at  Deshima,  the  Dutch  portion  of 
Nagasaki,  in  the  month  of  August,  1823.  By  force  of  character, 
by  urbanity  of  manner,  by  skill  as  a  physician,  even  by  a  system 
of  bribery  which  fell  in  with  the  customs  of  the  country,  and 
which  surely,  under  the  circumstances,  no  sensible  man  of  the 
world  will  condemn,  he  obtained  an  extraordinary  hold  over  the 
Japanese,  suspicious  and  intractable  as  they  then  were.  Having, 
in  1826,  accompanied  to  Yedo  the  Dutch  embassy  which  went 
once  every  four  years  to  pay  its  respects  to  the  Shogun,  Siebold 
made  great  friends  with  the  Court  astronomer,  Takahashi  by 
name,  and  received  from  him  a  map  of  the  country  which  in 
those  days  it  was  high  treason  to  put  into  the  hands  of  any 
foreigner.  When,  two  years  later,  the  affair  leaked  out,  Takahashi 
was  cast  into  a  dungeon  where  he  died,  Siebold's  house  was 
searched,  his  servants  were  arrested  and  tortured,  and  he  himself 
had  to  appear  on  his  knees  before   the  Governor  of  Nagasaki  to 

*  Raised  temporarily  to  30  yen  during  the  continuance  of  the  war. 

+  A  second  abridged  edition  was  published  by  his  sons  a  few  years  ago. 


4  so  Siebold. 

answer  for  his  share  in  the  crime.  He  adroitly  contrived  to  save 
his  chief  treasures,  including  the  map  so  precious  to  geographical 
science,  but  he  was  banished  from  the  country,  and  sailed  for 
Batavia  on  the  2nd  January,  1830.  His  persecuted  pupils, 
sheltered  by  some  of  the  leading  Daimy5s,  did  not  a  little  to 
further  the  cause  of  European  learning  in  Japan.* 

Arriving  in  Holland,  Siebold  was  created  a  baron  and  a  colonel  in 
the  army  by  the  king  of  that  country,  and  spent  the  next  twenty- 
nine  years  in  writing  his  numerous  works  and  arranging  his 
scientific  collections  in  the  museums  of  Leyden,  Munich,  and 
Wurzburg.  More  permanent  even  in  their  results  than  these 
learned  labours  was  his  activity  in  the  field  of  practical  botany. 
To  him  our  western  gardens  owe  the  Japanese  lilies,  peonies, 
aralias,  chrysanthemums,  and  scores  of  other  interesting  and 
beautiful  plants  with  which  they  are  now  adorned. 

Meanwhile,  Commodore  Perry's  expedition  had  burst  open 
Japan.  Siebold,  in  his  old  age,  returned  as  a  semi-official  am- 
bassador to  the  country  which  he  had  quitted  in  disgrace  so 
many  years  before.  This  mission  was  not  altogether  successful. 
The  times  were  for  war,  not  for  the  peaceful  negotiations  of  a 
man  of  science.  Siebold's  proper  field  was  not  politics,  but 
learning.  It  was  therefore  perhaps  no  loss  to  his  reputation  that 
a  second  semi-political  expedition  to  Japan,  which  Napoleon 
III.  had  thought  of  entrusting  to  him,  was  never  carried  out. 
Judged  by  his  scientific  works  and  their  practical  results,  Siebold 
is  the  greatest  of  the  many  great  Germans  who  have  contributed 
so  much  to  the  world's  knowledge  of  Japan, — Kaempfer  in  the 
seventeenth  century  and  Rein  in  our  own  day  being  the  other 
most  illustrious  names.  If  small  people  may  be  allowed  to 
criticise  giants,  we  would  here  note  that  the  only  weakness 
discoverable    in    the    early    German    school    of    investigators,    as 

*  A  somewhat  different  account  of  this  incident  was  printed  in  previous  editions 
of  the  present  work,  on  the  authority  of  an  obituary  article  by  Gerhard  Schirnhofer. 
The  present  more  trustworthy  version  was  obtained  from  J.  Murdoch,  the  critical 
historian  of  modern  Japan,  who  has  collated  the  original  authorities. 


Silk.  431 

represented  by  Kaempfer,  Thunberg,  Siebold,  and  even  Rein,  is  a 
certain  insufficiency  of  the  critical  faculty  in  questions  of  history  and 
language.  Surely  it  is  not  enough  to  get  at  the  Japanese  sources. 
The  Japanese  sources  must  themselves  be  subjected  to  rigorous 
scrutiny.  It  was  reserved  for  the  English  school,  represented 
by  Satow  and  Aston,  to  do  this, — to  explore  the  language  with 
scientific  exactness,  and  to  prove,  step  by  step,  that  the  so-called 
history,  which  Kaempfer  and  his  followers  had  taken  on  trust, 
was  a  mass  of  old  wives'  fables.  More  recently,  however,  Riess, 
Florenz,  and  others  have  gained  for  German  scholarship  bright 
laurels  in  this  field  also. 

Books  recommended.     Siebold   tells    the   story  of  his   own  earlier  journeyings  in 
his  Nippon- Archiv.     The  second  edition  has   a  short  biography. 

Silk.  The  silkworm  was  still  a  rare  novelty  at  the  dawn  of 
Japanese  history, — just  imported,  as  it  would  seem,  from  Korea. 
The  first  mention  of  it  is  in  the  annals  of  the  reign  of  the  Emperor 
Nintoku,  who  is  supposed  to  have  died  in  A.D.  399.  Up  till 
then,  the  materials  used  for  clothing  had  been  hempen  cloth 
and  the  bark  of  the  paper-mulberry,  coloured  by  being  rubbed 
with  madder  and  other  tinctorial  plants.  The  testimony  of 
Japanese  tradition  to  the  foreign  origin  of  silk,  and  its  absence 
here  in  earlier  ages,  go  to  support  the  results  of  modern  research 
to  the  effect  that  neither  the  true  silkworm  nor  the  mulberry- 
tree  on  whose  leaves  it  feeds  ever  occurs  wild  in  this  archipelago. 
Striking  change  indeed  !  Silk  has,  for  at  least  thirteen  hundred 
years,  helped  to  dress  the  Japanese  upper  classes,  male  as  well 
as  female,  and  has  come  to  form  the  chief  mainstay  of  the 
national  prosperity. 

The  Japanese  silkworm  moth  is  the  Bombyx  mori,  L.  ;  its 
mulberry-tree  the  "white  mulberry," — Morus  alba,  L.  Insect  and 
tree  have  alike  developed  several  varieties  under  cultivation.  As 
a  rule  the  trees  ars  pollarded,  and  Japanese  thrift  takes  advantage 
of  the  space  between  the  stumps  to  grow  small  crops  of  useful 
vegetables.     The  branches  are  generally  carried  home  for  stripping. 


432  Silk. 

The  Japanese  silkworm  manifests  some  marked  peculiarities  at 
different  stages  of  its  life-history.  The  eggs  have  extremely  fragile 
shells,  for  which  reason  the  moths  are  made  to  deposit  them  on 
cardboard  ;  the  worms  are  sluggish  in  their  habits,  and  the  cocoons 
smaller  and  lighter  than  those  of  Italy  and  the  Levant,  though 
the  silk  is  but  little  inferior  in  quality.  Some  indeed,  from 
certain  filatures  in  the  province  of  Shinano,  is  superior  on  account 
of  its  brilliantly  white  colour.  Careless  reeling,  with  consequent 
irregularity,  is  the  weak  point.  In  many  parts  of  the  country, 
primitive  methods  of  working  survive  unchanged ;  in  others, 
foreign  machinery  has  been  introduced. 

Besides  the  true  silkworm,  there  is  another  species  called 
yama-mayu,  which  feeds  on  the  oak-leaf,  and  produces  cocoons 
of  great  strength  and  beauty.  Yet  another — a  wild  one,  called 
sukarij  whose  food  is  the  leaf  of  the  chestnut  tree — has  less 
value. 

The  central  and  northern  provinces  of  the  Main  Island  have 
from  time  immemorial  been  dotted  with  silk-producing  districts. 
Nothing  is  so  remarkable  in  the  recent  industrial  development  of 
Japan  as  the  manner  in  which  these  districts  have  spread,  until 
scarcely  a  rural  commune  remains  without  its  mulberry  plantations. 
Statistics  confirm  what  any  observant  eye  can  notice.  During 
the  last  twenty  years  the  area  planted  with  mulberry-trees  has 
increased  about  200  per  cent,  and  as  much  as  88,000,000  yen 
worth  of  silk  has  been  sent  oversea  in  a  single  year.  What  the 
domestic  consumption  is,  we  cannot  say ;  but  it  must  be  enorm- 
ous. Think  of  the  dresses,  the  sashes,  the  quilts,  the  wrappers 
for  gifts,  the  brocades,  the  silk  crape,  the  rolls  of  silk  for  paint- 
ing or  writing  on,  and  the  thousand  other  uses  to  which  this 
most  beautiful  of  all  fabrics  is  put. 

Silk  is  exported  in  various  forms, — in  its  raw  state,  reeled  as 
filatures,  re-reels,  and  hanks,  as  cocoons,  and  waste-silk  ;  manu- 
factured, chiefly  in  the  form  of  piece-goods  and  handkerchiefs. 
For  some  years  there  was  also  a  large  export  of  silkworms'  eggs. 
Continental    Europe    and    the    United    States    are    Japan's    chief 


Singing-girls.  433 

customers  for  raw  and  waste  silk.     Her  manufactured    silk   finds 
a  market  all  over  the  world. 

Book  recommended.     Rein's  Industries  of  Japan,  p.  378  et  scq. 

Singing-girls.  The  charms  of  the  Japanese  singing-girl,  or 
geisha,  as  the  Japanese  term  her,  have  been  dwelt  on  so  often 
that  we  gladly  leave  them  to  her  more  ardent  admirers.  Deprived 
of  her,  Japanese  social  gatherings  would  lose  much  of  their 
vivacity  and  pleasing  unconstraint,  and  many  a  match,  interesting 
to  the  gossips,  would  never  be  made ;  for  quite  a  number  of 
prominent  men  have  shown  their  partiality  for  the  fair  warblers 
in  the  most  practical  of  ways,  namely,  by  marrying  them.  The 
singing-girl's  talk,  more  even  than  her  songs,  helps  her  to  such 
occasional  good  fortune ;  for  she  alone,  of  all  classes  of  her 
countrywomen,  has  divined  something  of  the  art  of  conversation. 
Or  the  antecedents  of  the  marriage  may  have  been  on  this  wise. 
A  poor  student  becomes  enamoured.  His  friends,  hearing  of 
what  they  deem  evil  courses,  stop  supplies.  The  singing-girl 
supports  her  lover,  who  thereupon  passes  brilliant  examinations, 
and  obtains  an  official  post.  They  are  married,  and  he  rises  to 
be  one  of  the  leading  men  in  the  empire,  while  she  of  course 
is  a  great  lady,  with  her  carriage  and  her  weekly  reception  days. 
Such  is  the  outline  of  more  than  one  modern  Japanese  romance 
in  real  life. 

Of  late  years  the  field  of  the  singing-girl's  operations  has  been 
limited  by  the  fact  that  in  official  circles,  the  European  banquet, 
with  its  familiar  salmis  and  aspics  and  its  intolerable  after-dinner 
speeches,  has  well-nigh  supplanted  the  native  feast.  Waiters  in 
swallow-tails  replace  the  damsels  of  the  guitar  and  the  wine-cup. 
The  training  of  a  singing-girl,  which  includes  lessons  in  the  art 
of  dancing,  often  begins  when  she  is  seven  years  old.  She  is 
then  practically  engaged  for  a  number  of  years,  the  career  once 
entered  on  being  difficult  to  quit,  unless  good  fortune  brings 
some  wealthy  lover  able  and  willing  to  buy  her  out.  There  is 
a  capitation  tax  of  four  yen  per  month  on  the  actual  singing-girls, 


434  Societies. 

and  of  half  that  sum  on  the  little  'prentices.     Such,   at  least,  are 
the  present  rates  in  Tokyo.     They  vary  in  the  provinces. 

Book  recommended.       The    Geishas    Calling,   in    Inouye's    "Sketches    of  Tokyo 
Life." 

Societies.  The  Japanese  of  our  day  have  taken  kindly  to 
societies  and  associations  of  all  sorts.  They  doubtless  feel  that 
their  nation  has  to  make  up  now  for  the  long  abstinence  from 
such  cooperative  activity  which  was  enforced  during  the  Toku- 
gawa  regime,  when  it  was  penal  for  more  than  five  persons  to 
club  together  for  any  purpose. 

The  six  most  influential  societies  at  present  are  the  Military 
Virtues  Society,  with  over  982,000  members ;  the  Red  Cross 
Association,  under  the  immediate  patronage  of  the  Empress,  with  a 
membership  of  over  930,000  ;  the  Ladies'  Patriotic  Society,  with 
over  140,000;  the  Agricultural  Society,  with  over  9,000;  the 
Associated  Temperance  Unions,  with  some  9,000  ;  and  the  Sanitary 
Society,  with  nearly  7,000.  These,  and  not  a  few  of  those  next 
to  be  mentioned,  have  branches  in  the  provinces,  and  most  of  them 
publish  transactions.  The  Educational  Society,  the  Geographical 
Society,  the  Oriental  Society,  the  Economical  Society,  the 
Philosophical,  Engineering,  Electrical,  Medical,  Historical,  and 
Philological  Societes,  and  the  Gakushi  Kwai-in,  an  association 
with  aims  kindred  to  those  of  the  Educational  Society,  have 
done  excellent  work.  We  have,  furthermore,  a  Society  of  Arts, 
Judicial,  Anthropological,  and  various  other  scientific  and  literary 
Societies,  a  Colonisation  Society,  a  number  of  Young  Men's 
Christian  Associations  and  Women's  Temperance  Societies,  an 
Association  of  Buddhist  Young  Men,  and  others  of  various  hues 
and  complexions,  not  to  mention  political  clubs,  of  which  the 
number  is  very  great  and  continually  changing. 

Some  of  the  Japanese  societies  have  eccentric  rules.  Thus, 
there  is  one  called  the  Mustache  Society,  whose  members  consist 
of  amateur  singers, — of  the  male  sex  only,  for  no  one  without  a 
mustache  is  eligible.  The  object  of  the  Growlers'  Society  is 
to  ventilate    discontent    and    emphasise    every   public  grievance. 


Society.  435 

The  Dotards'  Society,  on  the  contrary,  is  a  clique  of  antiquated 
wits  and  passees  beauties  who  have  prudently  determined  to  make 
the  best  even  of  old  age,  and  to  have  a  good  time  up  to  the 
very  end.  The  Pock-mark  Society,  we  believe,  still  exists,  though 
vaccination  has  sadly  thinned  its  ranks.  The  Society  for  the 
Abolition  of  Present-giving  has  (thank  Heaven  !)  come  to  grief. 
In  no  country  of  the  world  do  les  peliis  cadeanx  qui  entretiennent 
V  amilie  play  a  more  charming  part  than  in  Japan.  Japan  is 
becoming  prosaic  fast  enough  in  all  conscience.  Why  ruthlessly 
pull  up  by  the  roots  the  few  graces  that  remain? 

Books  recommended.  The  Gakushikaiin,  in  Vol.  XV.  Part  I.,  and  The  Japanese 
Education  Society,  in  Vol.  XVI.  Parti,  of  the  "  Asiatic  Transactions,''  both  by  Walter 
Dening. 

Society  in  Japan  is  almost  purely  official.  There  is  nothing 
here  corresponding  to  the  English  "county  families,"  whose 
members  may  or  may  not  accept  office,  but  who,  if  they  do  so, 
add  a  lustre  to  it,  far  from  its  adding  any  to  them.  Neither  is 
there  any  class  superior  by  birth  or  by  intellect,  as  in  France  or 
in  America,  which  stands  scornfully  aloof  and  would  deem  it 
derogatory  to  take  any  part  in  the  vulgar  scramble  for  office. 
The  Court  is  in  Japan  the  sole  and  actual  fountain  of  honour ; 
fallen  causes  have  in  this  land  no  partisans.  Even  money  is 
comparatively  little  esteemed.  There  are  few  millionaires,  and 
it  so  happens  that  the  half-dozen  men  who  have  amassed  large 
fortunes  in  business  during  the  last  twenty  or  thirty  years  are, 
for  the  most  part,  either  indifferent  to  society  or  little  qualified 
to  shine  in  it.  The  Court  (or  whoever  it  is  that  acts  in  the 
name  of  the  Court)  has  raised  up  a  new  bureaucracy  on  the 
ruins  of  the  old  feudalism, — a  bureaucracy  composed  partly  of 
men  of  good  birth,  partly  of  men  of  good  brains  sharpened  by 
the  best  attainable  training,  that  is,  in  the  proper  and  original 
sense  of  the  word,  an  aristocracy  which  is  the  state,  which  is 
society,  and  precludes  the  existence  of  any  rival.  Even  the  out- 
ward aspect  of  the  country  bears  testimony  to  these  peculiar 
social  conditions.       "  Where   are  the  country    houses  ?  "  we  have 


436  Society. 

sometimes  been  asked.  There  are  none,  for  the  good  reason  that 
there  is  no  one  to  live  in  them.  Peasants  live  in  the  country, 
officials  naturally  live  in  the  town,  where  their  offices  are.  To 
go  and  bury  themselves  in  the  country,  is  an  idea  that  never 
occurs  to  them.  How  should  it  ?  They  do  not  walk,  they 
are  not  sportsmen.  As  for  any  ties  binding  the  rich  to  their 
lowly  neighbours,  that  feudal  or  semi-feudal  view  of  things  has 
passed  away.  At  the  most,  the  high  official  and  his  family  may 
go  for  a  week  or  a  fortnight  to  some  mineral  spring  resort  or 
to  the  seaside  ;  but  they  are  not  really  happy  till  they  get  back 
to  town. 

It  would  be  interesting  to  follow  out  in  detail  the  far-reaching 
results  of  a  constitution  of  society  differing  so  widely  from  that 
to  which  Anglo-Saxons — whether  of  the  Kingdom,  the  States,  or 
the  Commonwealth — are  accustomed.  One  is  that  Japanese 
society  is  dull,  because  it  is  not  continuous  : — at  least  the  non- 
continuity  greatly  aggravates  that  dullness  which  is  rooted  in  the 
unfitness  of  Japanese  ladies  for  social  life,  in  our  sense  of  the 
word.  These  sweet,  retiring  little  creatures,  who  perform  un- 
complainingly all  the  duties  of  the  home,  lack  influence  over 
the  men,  and  have  (so  far  at  least)  acquired  none  of  the  arts 
of  social  leadership.  What  they  might  learn  of  such  matters  is 
subject  to  frequent  interruption  ;  for  when  a  man  is  out  of  office, 
he  is  eclipsed  utterly,  and  society  sees  him  and  his  wife  no 
more,  as  all  invitations  are  issued  according  to  official  lists,  and 
his  own  means  of  entertaining  are  conditioned  by  the  drawing  of 
his  official  salary.  If  you  are  not  in  office,  those  who  are  have 
no  need  of  you,  no  room  for  you. 

Curiously  enough,  even  travellers  are  sometimes  affected  by 
this  state  of  things.  If  we  have  heard  one,  we  have  heard  a 
score  of  complaints  somewhat  to  the  following  effect : — "  Why  ! 
when  the  so-and-so's  (mentioning  some  minister  maybe,  or 
consul-general,  or  head  of  commission  and  his  wife)  were  in 
Europe,  they  dined  with  us  over  and  over  again,  1  helped  Mme. 
so-and-so  to  choose  her  things,  etc.,  etc. ;  and  yet  when  I  called 


Society.  437 

upon  them  in  Tokyo,  the)-  seemed  to  be  always  out  or  some- 
thing, and  they  never  asked  us  to  anything,  and  we  are  so 
disappointed,  because  what  we  should  have  enjoyed,  of  all  things, 
would  have  been  to  see  a  nice  Japanese  home, — see  how  they 
live, — and  it  seems  so  odd,  too,  after  all  we  did  for  them.  Of 
course,  we  got  an  invitation  to  the  Imperial  Garden  Party  and 
to  the  Birthday  Ball ;  but  that  is  different."  These,  or  something 
like  these,  are  the  expressions  of  disappointment  which  we  have 
heard  drop  from  the  lips  of  not  a  few  intelligent  ladies  visiting 
Japan,  nor  have  we  always  found  it  easy  to  make  them  appreciate 
the  situation.  If  the  Japanese  couple  in  question  are  removed, 
temporarily  or  permanently,  from  official  life,  they  are  almost 
certainly  in  reduced  circumstances.  When  they  were  in  Europe, 
they  dressed  a  I'  europeenne,  lived  altogether  a  V  europeenne.  Now 
they  can  do  so  no  longer ;  not  improbably  they  do  not  even  care 
to  do  so,  but  when  in  office,  found  the  having  to  do  so  rather 
a  constraint.  They  went  to  see  you  in  London  as  great  folks  ; 
you  come  to  see  them  at  Tokyo  when  they  have  shrivelled  into 
small  folks.  They  feel  a  delicacy  about  asking  you  to  their 
house,  for  fear  you  should  be  uncomfortable  squatting  on  the 
floor, — for  fear,  too,  lest  you  should  inwardly  make  comparisons 
unfavourable  to  them  or  their  country.  Our  Anglo-Saxon  idea 
is  to  let  the  foreign  visitor  take  pot-luck  with  the  home  circle. 
Well-bred  Japanese  are  more  formal,  official  life  having  helped 
to  make  them  so.  If  they  cannot  make  ready  for  you  a  kid, 
they  would  rather  say  "not  at  home."  The  result  is  unpleasing ; 
yet  there  is  no  intentional  breach  of  hospitality.  How  hospitable 
this  nation  can  be,  has  been  demonstrated  over  and  over  again 
by  the  reception  accorded  to  notabilities  political,  literary,  and 
journalistic.  But  there,  once  more,  it  is  officialdom  that  has 
stepped  in,  money  has  been  granted  by  one  of  the  public 
departments,  action  has  been  directed  from  headquarters.  In 
fact,  officialdom  is  an  overwhelming  element  in  Japanese  society, 
it  is  the  dominant  element :  without  official  assistance,  nothing 
can  be  done.     Anglo-Saxons  will    be   apt  to  judge  such  want  of 


438  Society. 

individualism  a  source  of  weakness.  But  Japan's  marvellous  rise, 
the  position  she  has  won  for  herself  in  a  single  generation  of 
officially  directed  effort,  supplies  an  incontestable  proof  to  the 
contrary.  She  has  succeeded,  as  Prussia  succeeded,  through 
centralisation;  her  five-and-forty  millions  move  as  one  man. 

The  functions — we  hesitate  to  call  them  entertainments,  so 
little  entertaining  are  they — incident  to  Japanese  society  as  at 
present  constituted,  are  of  two  kinds.  First,  dinners  in  native 
style  for  men  only,  often  served  by  singing-girls,  meetings  of 
political  or  scientific  associations,  club  gatherings,  and  the  like  : 
— these  do  offer  a  modicum  of  fun  and  interest,  and  much 
sans-gene,  but  lack  that  refinement  which  the  presence  of  ladies 
would  confer.  The  other  category  includes  dinners  in  European 
style,  where,  if  foreigners  are  present,  the  language  difficulty, 
combined  with  the  paucity  of  mutually  interesting  topics  of 
conversation,  doubles  and  trebles  that  gloom  of  dullness  which 
the  absence  of  social  talent  and  of  the  habit  of  society  spreads 
in  deep  layers  over  the  whole  surface  of  Tokyo  life.  Besides 
dinners,  there  are  balls  at  which  the  Japanese  have  now — after 
an  ineffectual  attempt — practically  ceased  to  dance,  and  garden 
parties  consisting  either  of  men  alone  (!)  or  of  men  and  women. 
Some  well-advised  hosts  supply  an  actual  performance  on  such 
occasions, — jugglers,  day  fireworks,  the  No  dance,  or  a  public 
story-teller  (see  Article  so  entitled).  Occasionally,  too,  nowadays 
there  is  a  band ;  but  in  the  lack  of  all  talent  for  music,  it  were 
better  dispensed  with.  The  foreign  residents  of  Tokyo — or  rather 
the  members  of  the  diplomatic  body — entertain  each  other  a 
great  deal.  In  fact,  more  dinners  are  given  there  during  the 
winter  than  in  many  a  European  capital ;  for,  in  the  absence  of 
European  theatres,  concerts,  galleries,  lectures,  and  intellectual 
interests  generally,  what  remains  but  the  "  pleasures  of  the  table  ?  " 
Needless  to  say,  however,  that  this  charmed  circle  is  fast  closed 
to  travellers,  unless  they  happen  to  be  personally  intimate  with 
one  of  its  members. 

It  will  be  judged  from  the  above  that  social  functions  are  not 


Story-tellers.  439 

what  any  well-advised  person  will  cross  these  seas  to  seek.  Even 
so  fascinating  a  country  as  Japan  cannot  provide  everything. 
The  charm  here  is  in  the  street  life  of  the  lower  classes,  the 
kindliness  of  the  simple  country  folk,  the  delicate  art  adorning 
each  common  object  of  every-day  life,  the  parks  of  cherry-blossom 
that  break  the  monotony  of  the  cities,  the  trim  chrysanthemum 
gardens,  above  all  the  enchanting  scenery, — those  giant  cedars 
that  overshadow  moss-grown  shrines,  those  volcanic  cones  of 
ineffably  graceful  logarithmic  curve,  those  torrents  to  be  crossed 
warily  on  stepping-stones  or  on  "  hanging  bridges  "  stretched  like 
a  spider's  thread  and  trembling  at  every  step,  and  the  breezy 
uplands  carpeted  with  wild  flowers  and  re-echoing  with  the 
carolling  of  nightingales  and  larks,  and  the  summer  hills  around 
which  the  vapours  twirl  in  grey  semi-diaphanous  garlands,  and 
the  valleys  of  mingled  scarlet  maple  and  deepest  green,  whose 
pinnacled  rock-walls  zigzag  the  sky  with  their  sharply  serrated 
line.  Surely  the  catalogue  of  Japan's  perfections  is  sufficiently 
long  and  goodly.  But  when  your  cultured  soul  begins  to  sigh 
for  the  delights  of  the  drawing-room  and  the  concert-hall,  you 
had  better  invest  in  a  ticket  home. 

Story-tellers.  Though  the  Japanese  are  a  nation  of  readers, 
they  love  also  to  listen  to  the  tales  of  the  professional  story- 
teller, who  is  quite  an  artist  in  his  way.  The  lower  sort  of 
story-teller  may  be  seen  seated  at  the  street-corner,  with  a  circle 
of  gaping  coolies  round  him.  The  higher  class  form  guilds 
who  own  special  houses  of  entertainment  called  yose,  and  may 
also  be  engaged  by  the  hour  to  amuse  private  parties.  Some 
story-telling  is  rather  in  the  nature  of  a  penny  reading.  The 
man  sits  with  an  open  book  before  him  and  expounds  it, — the 
story  of  the  Forty-seven  Ronins  perhaps,  or  the  Chinese  novel 
of  the  "  Three  Kingdoms  "  (Sangoku  Shi),  or  an  account  of  the 
Satsuma  rebellion,  or  of  the  old  wars  of  the  Taira  and  Minamoto 
families  in  the  Middle  Ages ; — and  when  he  comes  to  some 
particularly  good  point,  he   emphasises  it  by  a  rap  with  his  fan 


440  Sun,  Moon,  and  Stars. 

or  with  a  little  slab  of  wood  kept  by  him  for  the  purpose.  Such 
a  reading  is  called  gundan  if  the  subject  be  war  ;  otherwise  it  is 
koshaku,  which  means  literally  a  "  disquisition."  The  hanashi-ka 
or  story-teller  proper,  deals  in  love-tales,  anecdotes,  and  imaginary 
incidents. 

The  entertainment  offered  at  a  yose  is  generally  mixed.  There 
will  be  war-stories,  love-tales,  recitations  to  the  accompaniment 
of  the  banjo,  the  same  programme  being  mostly  adhered  to  for 
a  fortnight,  and  a  change  being  made  on  the  ist  and  16th  of  the 
month.  As  the  number  of  such  houses  in  every  large  city  is 
considerable,  hearers  may  nevertheless  find  something  new  every 
night  to  listen  to,  and  the  higher  class  of  story-tellers  themselves 
may  realise  what  for  Japan  is  a  very  fair  income.  For  they  drive 
about  from  one  house  of  entertainment  to  another,  stopping  only 
a  quarter  of  an  hour  or  so  at  each, — just  time  to  tell  one  story 
and  earn  a  dollar  or  two  by  it. 

Many  foreign  students  of  the  Japanese  language  have  found 
the  yose  their  best  school ;  but  only  two  have  hitherto  thought  of 
going  there,  not  as  listeners,  but  as  performers.  One  is  an 
Englishman  named  Black,  whose  command  of  Japanese  is  so 
perfect,  and  whose  plots  borrowed  from  the  stores  of  European 
fiction  prove  such  agreeable  novelties,  that  the  Tokyo  story-tellers 
have  admitted  him  to  their  guild.  The  other — also  an  English- 
man, of  the  name  of  John  Pale — is  said  to  sing  Japanese  songs 
as  well  as  any  native. 

Book  recommended.     Sketches  of  Tokyo  Life,  by  J.  Inouye. 

Sun,  Moon,  and  Stars.  In  the  early  Japanese  mythology 
the  sun  is  ruled  over  by  a  goddess,  the  glorious  Ama-terasu,  or 
"  Heaven-Shiner,"  from  whom  is  descended  the  Imperial  family 
of  Japan.  The  moon  belongs  to  her  brother,  the  rough  and 
violent  god  Susa-no-o.  According  to  the  later  Japanese  poets, 
there  grows  in  the  moon  a  cassia-tree  (kalsura),  whose  reddening 
leaves  cause  its  brighter  refulgence  in  autumn.  They  also  tell 
us  of  a  great  city  in  the  moon  (isnki  no  miyako),  and  the  myth- 


Sun,  Moon,  and  Stars.  441 

makers  have  brought  down  a  maiden  from  the  moon  to  do 
penance  on  earth  amid  various  picturesque  scenes.  But  the 
genuinely  popular  imagination  of  the  present  day  allows  only  of  a 
hare  in  the  moon,  which  keeps  pounding  away  at  rice  in  a  mortar 
to  make  into  cakes.  The  idea  of  the  hare  was  borrowed  from 
China ;  but  the  rice-cakes  seem  to  be  native,  and  to  have  their 
origin  in  a  pun, — the  same  word  mochi  happening  to  have  the 
two  acceptations  of  " rice-cake"  and  "full  moon."  The  sun  is 
supposed  to  be  inhabited  by  a  three-legged  crow, — also  a  Chinese 
notion.  Hence  the  expression  kin-u  gyoku-to,  "the  golden  crow 
and  the  jewelled  hare,"  is  a  periphrasis  for  the  sun  and  moon. 

Far  more  important  than  the  sun  to  esthetic  persons  is  the 
moon.  Of  all  subjects,  this  is  the  one  on  which  Japanese  poets 
and  romance-writers  most  constantly  dwell,  one  of  them  emphati- 
cally asserting  that  "  all  griefs  can  be  assuaged  by  gazing  at  the 
moon."  People  still  worship  the  crescent,  each  time  it  is  first 
seen;  but  the  greatest  nights  of  the  lunar  year  are  the  26th  of 
the  7th  moon,  the  15th  of  the  8th  moon,  and  the  13th  of  the 
9th  moon,  Old  Calendar,  which  roughly  correspond  to  dates  some 
five  or  six  weeks  later  according  to  our  calendar,  and  thus  include 
the  three  moons  of  the  autumn  trimester.  On  the  26th  night  of 
the  7th  moon,  people  in  Tokyo  visit  the  tea-houses  at  Atago- 
yama  or  those  on  the  sea-shore  of  Takanawa,  and  sit  up  till  a 
very  late,  or  rather  early,  hour  to  see  the  moon  rise  over  the 
water,  drinking  sake  the  while,  and  composing  verses  appropriate 
to  the  sentimental  character  of  the  scene.  The  15  th  night  of 
the  8th  moon,  which  is  no  other  than  our  harvest-moon  at  the 
full,  is  celebrated  by  an  offering  of  beans  and  dumplings  and  of 
bouquets  of  eulalia-grass  and  lespedeza  blossom.  This  moon  is 
termed  the  "bean  moon."  The  13th  night  of  the  9th  moon  sees 
offerings  of  the  same  bouquets,  of  dumplings,  and  of  chestnuts. 
It  is  termed  the  "chestnut  moon." 

The  stars  are  much  less  admired  and  written  about  in  Japan 
than  in  Europe.  No  Japanese  bard  has  ever  apostrophised  them 
as  "  the  poetry  of  heaven."      The   only    fable  worth  mentioning 


442  Supernatural  Creatures. 

here  in  connection  with  the  stars  is  that  which  inspires  the 
festival  named  Tanabata.  This  fable,  which  is  of  Chinese  origin, 
relates  the  loves  of  a  Herdsman  and  a  Weaving-girl.  The 
Herdsman  is  a  star  in  Aquila,  the  Weaver  is  the  star  Vega. 
They  dwell  on  opposite  sides  of  the  "  Celestial  River,"  or  Milky 
Way,  and  may  never  meet  but  on  the  7th  night  of  the  7th 
moon,  a  night  held  sacred  to  them,  strips  of  paper  with  poetic 
effusions  in  their  honour  being  stuck  on  stems  of  bamboo  grass 
and  set  up  in  various  places.  According  to  one  version  of  the 
legend,  the  Weaving-girl  was  so  constantly  kept  employed  in 
making  garments  for  the  offspring  of  the  Emperor  of  Heaven — 
in  other  words,  God — that  she  had  no  leisure  to  attend  to  the 
adornment  of  her  person.  At  last,  however,  God,  taking  com- 
passion on  her  loneliness,  gave  her  in  marriage  to  the  Herdsman 
who  dwelt  on  the  opposite  bank  of  the  river.  Hereupon  the 
woman  began  to  grow  remiss  in  her  work.  God,  in  his  anger, 
then  made  her  recross  the  river,  at  the  same  time  forbidding  her 
husband  to  visit  her  oftener  than  once  a  year.  Another  version 
represents  the  pair  as  mortals,  who  were  wedded  at  the  early 
ages  of  fifteen  and  twelve,  and  who  died  at  the  ages  of  a  hundred 
and  three  and  ninety-nine  respectively.  After  death,  their  spirits 
flew  up  to  the  sky,  where  the  Supreme  Deity  bathed  daily  in 
the  Celestial  River.  No  mortals  might  pollute  it  by  their  touch, 
except  on  the  7th  day  of  the  7th  moon,  when  the  Deity,  instead 
of  bathing,  went  to  listen  to  the  chanting  of  the  Buddhist 
scriptures. 

Supernatural  Creatures  of  divers  semi-human  and  animal 
shapes  are  still  spoken  of  by  the  common  people  with  a  sort  of 
half-belief,  and  retain  an  assured  place  in  art.  The  Tennin,  or 
Buddhist  angels,  are  neither  of  the  male  sex,  nor  white-clad,  nor 
winged  : — they  are  females,  apparently  of  a  certain  age,  who 
float  in  mid-air,  robed  in  long,  gay-coloured  garments  resembl- 
ing swaddling-clothes,  and  who  often  play  on  flutes  and  lutes 
and  other   musical  instruments.       More    popular   than    these — in 


Supernatural  Creatures.  443 

fact,  most  popular  of  all  supernatural  beings — are  the  Te?igu, 
a  class  of  goblins  or  gnomes  that  haunt  the  mountains  and 
woodlands,  and  play  many  pranks.  They  have  an  affinity  to 
birds  ;  for  they  are  winged  and  beaked,  sometimes  clawed.*  But 
often  the  beak  becomes  a  large  and  enormously  long  human 
nose,  and  the  whole  creature  is  conceived  as  human,  nothing 
bird-like  remaining  but  the  fan  of  feathers  with  which  it  fans  itself. 
It  is  often  dressed  in  leaves,  and  wears  on  its  head  a  tiny  cap. 
Several  fine  temples  are  still  dedicated  to  these  goblins,  that  of  Do- 
ryo  Sama  near  Miyanoshita  being  specially  beautiful.  Then  there 
are  the  Sermin,  or  "  mountain  genii," — men  in  shape,  but  immortal. 
They  are  stately,  not  grotesque  and  elfish  like  the  other  class 
just  mentioned.  The  Shojo  are  red-haired  sea  monsters,  given  to 
drinking  enormous  quantities  of  liquor.  The  "  Three-eyed  Friar  " 
and  the  "Single-eyed  Acolyte"  (his  single  eye  glares  in  mid- 
forehead)  must  be  uncanny  persons  to  meet  in  the  gloaming, 
nor  less  so  the  "  White  Woman "  who  wanders  about  in  the 
snow.  The  youth  of  Japan  has  a  wholesome  dread  of  these  bogies, 
and  also  fears  a  variety  of  Oni — demons  and  ogres — of  whom 
blood-curdling  stories  are  told.  They  have  horns,  but  no  tail, 
and  their  sole  article  of  clothing  is  a  loin-cloth  of  tiger  skin. 
One  of  them  produces  the  thunder  by  tapping  on  a  set  of  tam- 
bourines, and  sometimes  he  falls  to  the  ground  and  hurts  himself. 
Japanese  ghosts  do  not  walk  the  earth  wound  in  sheets,  for  the 
simple  reason  that  sheets  form  no  part  of  Japanese  sleeping 
arrangements.  But  their  legs  dwindle  into  nothingness,  while  the 
body  is  drawn  out  to  an  alarming  height,  and  they  hold  their 
hands  in  front  of  them  in  a  grabbling  attitude.  Sometimes 
the  neck  is  of  frightful  length  (rokuro-kubi),  and  twisted  like  a 
snake. 

Of  mythic  beasts,    the    most    important    by    far    is    that  noble 
creature  the  Dragon, — Chinese  by  origin,    but    thoroughly  natur- 

*  The  word  tengu  is  written  with  the  Chinese  character  ^  i$J  lit.  "  heavenly 
dog."  But  in  Japan  this  orthography  is  misleading,  as  the  supernatural  creature  in 
question  is  entirely  bird-like. 


444  Superstitions. 

alised  in  Japan. *  His  affinities  are  with  the  watery  element 
that  rules  in  clouds  and  tempests.  Sometimes  he  will  ascend 
Fuji,  borne  thither  on  a  cloud ;  at  others  he  hides  himself 
in  the  waters  of  some  river  or  deep  secluded  lake,  and 
will  cause  terrific  commotion  in  heaven  and  earth  if  disturbed. 
The  palace  of  the  King  of  the  Dragons  is  a  marvellously  rich 
abode  lying  far  away,  many  leagues  beneath  the  ocean  waves. 
The  Unicorn  and  the  Phenix  scarcely  appear  except  in  art,  and 
the  only  function  of  the  Baku  (seemingly  a  large  quadruped 
allied  to  the  tapir)  is  to  devour  evil  dreams.  More  popular  is 
the  giant  Namasu, — an  eel-like  creature,  but  thicker  and  flat- 
headed  and  supplied  with  mustachios, — which  dwells  somewhere 
in  the  bowels  of  the  earth,  and  whose  occasional  wngglings  are 
the  cause  of  earthquakes.  Another  marine  creature,  the  Octopus, 
which  assumes  semi-human  form,  inspires  dread  by  coming 
ashore  to  steal  potatoes,  and  by  other  pranks.  The  people  also 
believe  in  Mermaids,  but  often  confound  with  these  imaginary 
beings  the  really  existing  seal,  perhaps  because  of  its  almost 
pathetically  human  countenance.  Among  birds,  a  purely  myth- 
ical being  is  the  Nue.  When  the  reader  is  informed  that  this 
so-called  "  bird  "  (for  it  flies,  and  sings  in  a  voice  at  once  "  hoarse, 
guttural,  loud,  and  very  plaintive  ")  has  "  the  head  of  a  monkey, 
the  body  of  a  tiger,  and  the  tail  of  a  serpent,"  he  will  surely 
not  scruple  to  admit,  with  the  old  commentator,  that  "it  is  a 
rare  and  peculiar  creature." 

For  what  is  thought  of  magic    foxes,    badgers,    and    dogs,   see 
page   115. 

Book  recommended.     Jaj>anischer  Humor,  by  C.  Netto  and  G.  Wagener. 

Superstitions.     Mention  has  been  made  in  previous  Articles 
of  the  popular  Japanese  belief  in  divination,  in  demoniacal  posses- 

*  Probably  the  dragon's  real  birthplace  is  still  further  west;  but  from  the  Japanese 
point  of  view,  he  is  Chinese.  A  similar  caveat  applies  to  several  other  things  called 
Chinese  in  Japan  :— China  was,  if  not  the  manufactory,  at  least  the  storehouse  whence 
Japan  drew  them. 


Superstitions.  445 

sion,  and  in  the  efficacy  of  charms  against  fire,  shipwreck,  and 
disease.  There  exist  also  various  superstitious  notions  about 
numbers.  For  instance,  7  and  all  numbers  into  which  7  enters, 
as  17,  27,  etc.,  are  unlucky.  Certain  numerical  proportions  must 
be  observed  between  the  ages  of  man  and  woman  in  wedlock. 
By  the  rule  known  as  yo-me  to-me,  you  should  not  marry  a  girl 
whose  age  differs  by  4  years  or  by  10  years  from  your  own. 
(But  as  Far-Eastern  reckoning  is  always  inclusive, — see  page  12, 
— the  real  numbers  are  3  and  9;  thus  a  man  of  21  must  not 
marry  a  girl  of  18,  nor  a  man  of  26  a  girl  of  17).  Ages  also 
exercise  an  influence  on  certain  occupations.  Thus,  trees  must 
be  grafted  only  by  young  men,  because  of  the  special  need 
of  vital  energy  in  the  graft.  The  notion  that  certain  days  are 
lucky,  others  unlucky,  is  still  so  firmly  rooted  that  some  news- 
papers which  cater  for  the  lower  classes  publish  lists  of  them. 
For  example,  what  are  known  as  lomo-biki  no  hi  are  days  exer- 
cising such  irresistible  influence  on  the  future  that  if  a  funeral 
takes  place  on  one  of  them,  there  will  certainly  soon  be  another 
funeral  in  the  same  family.  The  general  idea  that  "misfortunes 
never  come  singly,"  is  expressed  by  the  adage  Ni-do  aru  kolo  wa, 
san-do  aru,  "  What  happens  twice  will  happen  thrice." 

Questions  of  place  must  be  attended  to  no  less  carefully  than 
proper  times  and  seasons,  if  ill-luck  is  to  be  avoided.  Thus,  no 
Japanese  would  sleep  with  his  head  to  the  North  (that  is,  facing 
South), — for  that  is  the  direction  in  which  corpses  are  laid  out. 
The  East  is  the  luckiest  side,  the  next  best  being  the  South. 
There  is  always  danger  to  be  feared  from  the  North-East,  which 
quarter  has  received  the  name  of  the  "  demon's  gate  : " — no 
openings  are  left  in  a  house  on  that  side,  and  no  well  is  ever 
dug  there,  but  Buddhist  temples  are  often  built  on  the  North- 
East  of  a  city  as  a  means  of  protection.  Sometimes,  in  shifting 
house  from  one  locality  to  another,  it  may  be  prudent  not  to  go 
straight  to  the  objective,  but  to  make  a  circuit  via  some  other 
point  of  the  compass,  and  stop  a  night — maybe  a  longer  period, 
according  as  the  soothsayer  shall  indicate — on  the  way.     Certain 


446  Superstitions. 

mountains  and  lakes  must  not  be  approached  ;  for  the  inevitable 
result  is  a  typhoon,  especially  if  the  intruder  should  disturb  or 
carry  off  any  of  the  water. 

There  are  various  superstitions  connected  with  fire,  that  arch- 
enemy of  a  people  whose  cities  are  built  of  wood.  Do  not 
throw  any  nail-parings  into  the  fire  : — if  you  do,  the  fire  will 
take  vengeance  by  burning  either  you  or  your  house.  Do  not 
throw  persimmon-stones  into  the  fire,  or  you  will  become  a 
leper.  Do  not  bring  in  any  of  those  delicately  beautiful  Lent 
lilies  (higa?i-bana,  lit.  equinox  flowers^)  that  bloom  in  scarlet 
profusion  on  the  margins  of  the  rice-fields  at  the  time  of  the 
spring  and  autumn  equinox.  Your  house  may  be  burnt  down. 
Perhaps  this  idea  was  suggested  by  the  colour  and  shape  of  the 
flower  resembling  tongues  of  flame,  besides  which  the  word 
"equinox"  is  connected  with  the  idea  of  death,  it  being  at  that 
festival  that  the  departed  spirits  cross  over  the  Buddhist  Styx. 
In  former  days  it  was  supposed  that  any  one  gazing  on  the 
Mikado  would  be  struck  blind,  and  accordingly  that  sacred 
personage's  "  dragon  face "  was  always  veiled  by  a  fine  bamboo 
mat  from  those  to  whom  an  audience  was  granted.  Photography, 
when  first  introduced,  was  also  considered  dangerous,  because 
likely  to  absorb  some  portion  of  the  life  or  spirit  of  the  person 
photographed.*  Belonging  to  a  different  set  of  ideas,  and  not 
without  a  touch  of  quiet  humour,  is  a  charm  in  the  shape  of  a 
short  inscription  which,  at  this  very  moment  of  writing  (1904), 
is  to  be  found  pasted  in  every  room  of  one  of  the  best-known 
hotels  in  Japan.  It  keeps  out  ants,  by  informing  them  that 
"  For  every  hundred  cubic  inches  of  ants,  a  charge  of  sixteen  cash 
will  be  levied."  The  ant,  being  a  thrifty  creature,  refuses  to 
enter  even  on  such  moderate  terms. 

The  above  are  samples  merely,  culled  at  haphazard.  Of  other 
superstitions    concerning    names,    concerning  clothes,  concerning 

*  Photography  is  now  dangerous  in  sober  earnest  to  the  photographer,  if  he  falls  into 
the  clutches  of  the  police  for  following  his  amusement  in  any  of  the  "forbidden  zones 
that  surround  forts  and  other  places  under   military  ban. 


Swords.  447 

the  weather,  concerning  sneezing,  concerning  words  to  be  avoided, 
etc.,  etc.,  etc.,  the  tale  is  endless.  A  very  fat  volume  could  be 
filled,  were  a  complete  account  of  all  Japanese  superstitions,  past 
and  present,  urban  and  rustic,  to  be  brought  together ;  for  each 
province  would  contribute  its  quota.  At  the  same  time  all,  or 
almost  all,  are  now  confined  to  the  lower  classes ;  or  if  they 
find  any  credence  in  the  upper  class,  it  is  chiefly  among  the 
women-folk.  The  generation  now  at  school  is — both  for  good 
and  for  evil — distinctly  Voltairian. 

Book  recommended.     Brinkley's  Japan  and  China,  Vol.  V.  Chap.  VI. 

Swords.  The  Japanese  sword  of  ancient  days  (the  tsurugi) 
was  a  straight,  double-edged,  heavy  weapon  some  three  feet 
long,  intended  to  be  brandished  with  both  hands.  That  of 
mediaeval  and  modern  times  (the  katana)  is  lighter,  shorter,  has 
but  a  single  edge,  and  is  slightly  curved  towards  the  point. 
There  is  also  the  wakizashi,  or  dirk  of  about  nine  and  a  half 
inches,  with  which  harakiri  was  committed.  The  four  most 
famous  Japanese  sword-smiths  are  Munechika  (ioth  century), 
Masamune  and  Yoshimitsu  (latter  part  of  the  13th  century), 
and  Muramasa  (latter  part  of  the  14th  century).  But  Mura- 
masa's  blades  had  the  reputation  of  being  unlucky.  Towards 
the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century  arose  schools  of  artists  in 
metal,  who  made  it  their  business  to  adorn  the  hilt,  the  guard, 
the  sheath,  and  other  appurtenances  in  a  manner  which  is  still 
the  delight  of  collectors.  But  to  the  Japanese  connoisseur  the 
great  treasure  is  always  the  blade  itself,  which  has  been  called 
"the  living  soul  of  the  Samurai." 

Japanese  swords  excel  even  the  vaunted  products  of  Damascus 
and  Toledo.  To  cut  through  a  pile  of  copper  coins  without 
nicking  the  blade  is,  or  was,  a  common  feat.  History,  tradition, 
and  romance  alike  re-echo  with  the  exploits  of  this  wonderful 
weapon.  The  magic  sword,  and  the  sword  handed  down  as 
an  heirloom,  figure  as  plentifully  in  the  pages  of  Japanese 
novel-writers    as    magic    rings    and    strawberry-marks    used    once 


448  Swords. 

upon  a  time  to  do  in  the  West.  The  custom  which  obtained 
among  the  Samurai  of  wearing  two  swords,  is  believed  to  date 
from  the  beginning  of  the  fourteenth  century.  It  was  abolished 
by  an  edict  issued  on  the  28th  March,  1876,  and  taking  effect 
from  the  1st  January,  1877.  The  edict  was  obeyed  by  this 
strangely  docile  people  without  a  blow  being  struck,  and  the 
curio-shops  displayed  heaps  of  swords  which,  a  few  months 
before,  the  owners  would  less  willingly  have  parted  with  than 
with  life  itself.  Shortly  afterwards  a  second  edict  appeared,  re- 
scinding the  first  and  leaving  any  one  at  liberty  to  wear  what 
swords  he  pleased.  But  as  the  privilege  of  a  class  distinction 
was  thus  obliterated,  none  cared  to  take  advantage  of  the 
permission,  and  the  two-sworded  Japanese  gentleman  is  now 
extinct. 

Excellent  specimens  of  swords  and  scabbards  may  be  seen  at 
Tokyo  in  the  Fiishu-kwan,  or  Museum  of  Arms,  situated  in  the 
ground  of  the  Shokonsha  temple. 

Japanese  swords  are  made  of  soft,  elastic,  magnetic  iron  com- 
bined with  hard  steel.  "The  tempering  of  the  edge,"  says 
Rein,  "is  carefully  done  in  the  charcoal  furnace,  the  softer 
backs  and  the  sides  being  surrounded  up  to  a  certain  point  with 
fire-clay,  so  that  only  the  edge  remains  outside.  The  cooling 
takes  place  in  cold  water.  It  is  in  this  way  that  the  steeled 
edge  may  be  distinguished  clearly  from  the  back,  by  its  colour 
and  lustre.  The  backs  of  knives,  axes,  and  other  weapons  are 
united  to  the  steel  edge  either  by  welding  on  one  side,  or  by 
fitting  the  edge  into  a  fluted  groove  of  the  back  blade,  and 
welding  on  both  sides." 

The  most  extraordinary  circumstance  connected  with  swords 
in  this  country  is  that  ladders  are  made  of  them  set  edge  up, 
which  men  climb,  with  the  idea  originally  of  propitiating  the 
gods  and  gaining  merit,  though  now  the  ordeal  would  seem  to 
have  sunk  to  the  level  of  a  mere  acrobatic  performance.  On 
the  occasion  when  the  present  writer  witnessed  one  of  these 
performances  in  the  grounds  of  the  temple  of  Asakusa  at  Tokyo, 


Taste. 


449 


he  inspected  the  swords,  could  not  detect  any  trace  of  deception, 
and  is  therefore  unable  to  offer  an  explanation  of  the  fact  that 
several  persons  walked  up  this  dreadful  ladder  barefoot  without 
any   untoward  consequences. 

Books  recommended.  Rein's  Industries  of  Ja/>an,  p.  430.  Brinkley's  Japan 
and  China,  Vol.  II,  p.  136  et  seq.,  also  Vol.  VII  for  the  sword  furniture. — McCIatchie's 
The  Sword  of  Japan,  in  Vol.  II.  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions."— B.  S.  Lyman's 
Japanese  Swords,  in  the  "Proceedings  of  the  Numismatic  and  Antiquarian  Society  of 
Philadelphia"  for  1892,  and  papers  by  E.  Gilbertson  in  the  "Transactions  of  the 
Japan  Society."  For  prehistoric  swords,  Gowland's  Dolmens  and  Burial  Mounds  in 
Japan,  published  by  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  (London)  ;  for  the  sword  walking, 
Lowell's  Occult  Japan. 

Taste.  Japanese  taste  in  painting,  in  house  decoration,  in 
all  matters  depending  on  line  and  form,  may  be  summed  up  in 
one  word — sobriety.  The  bluster  which  mistakes  bigness  for 
greatness,  the  vulgarity  which  smothers  beauty  under  ostentation 
and  extravagance,  have  no  place  in  the  Japanese  way  of  think- 
ing. The  alcove  of  a  Tokyo  or  Kyoto  drawing-room  holds  one 
picture  and  one  flower-vase,  which  are  changed  from  time  to  time. 
To  be  sure,  picture  and  vase  are  alike  exquisite.  The  posses- 
sions of  the  master  of  the  house  are  not  sown  broadcast,  as  much 
as  to  say,  "  Look  what  a  lot  of  expensive  articles  I've  got,  and 
just  think  how  jolly  rich  I  must  be  !  "  He  does  not  stick  up 
plates  on  walls  : — plates  are  meant  to  hold  food.  He  would  not, 
whatever  might  be  his  means,  waste  ^iooo,  or  £100,  or  even 
£20,  on  the  flowers  for  a  single  party  : — flowers  are  simple 
things,  perishable  things ;  it  is  incongruous  to  lavish  on  them 
sums  that  would  procure  precious  stones  for  heirlooms.  And 
how  this  moderation  makes  for  happiness  !  The  rich  not  being 
blatant,  the  poor  are  not  abject ;  in  fact,  though  poverty  exists, 
pauperism  does  not.  A  genuine  spirit  of  equality  pervades 
society. 

When  will  Europe  learn  afresh  from  Japan  that  lesson 
of  proportion,  of  fitness,  of  sobriety,  which  Greece  once 
knew  so  well  ?  When  will  America  learn  it, — the  land  our 
grandfathers    used    to    credit    with    republican     simplicity,     but 


450  Tattooing. 

which  we  of  the  present  age  have  come  to  connect  with  the 
idea  of  a  bombastic  luxury,  comparable  only  to  the  extrava- 
gances of  Rome  when  Rome's  moral  fibre  was  beginning  to  be 
relaxed  ?  But  it  seems  likely  that  instead  of  Japan's  converting  us, 
we  shall  pervert  Japan.  Contact  has  already  tainted  the  dress, 
the  houses,  the  pictures,  the  life  generally,  of  the  upper  class.  It  is 
to  the  common  people  that  one  must  now  go  for  the  old  tradition 
of  sober  beauty  and  proportion.  You  want  flowers  arranged  ? 
Ask  your  house-coolie.  There  is  something  wrong  in  the  way 
the  garden  is  laid  out  ?  It  looks  too  formal,  and  yet  your  pro- 
posed alterations  would  turn  it  into  a  formless  maze?  Call  in 
the  cook  or  the  washerman  as  counsellor. 

To  tell  the  whole  truth,  however,  the  Japanese  have  not  escaped 
the  defects  of  their  qualities.  Their  sobriety  tends  to  degenerate 
into  littleness.  Grandeur  in  any  shape,  rugged  mountain 
ranges,  the  storm-tossed  sea,  wide  sweeps  of  moorland,  make  no 
deep  impression  on  them.  They  love  to  expatiate  on  the  natural 
beauties  of  their  country.  Nevertheless,  with  so  much  to  choose 
from,  their  taste  in  almost  every  instance  singles  out  views  of 
limited  extent  and  a  kind  of  polished  loveliness  partly  dependent 
on  human  aid.  In  short,  they  admire  scenes,  not  scenery.  He 
who  has  visited  Matsushima,  the  "  Plains  of  Heaven "  near 
Yokohama,  or  any  other  widely  celebrated  spot,  will  appreciate 
what  we  mean.  Again,  they  do  not  set  their  houses  on  heights 
commanding  distant  prospects.  They  build  preferably  on  the 
flat  or  in  a  hollow,  where  the  fence  of  their  dainty  garden  shuts 
off  the  outer  world. 

Tattooing.  Long  before  Japan  was  sufficiently  civilised  to 
possess  any  records  of  her  own,  Chinese  travellers  noted  down 
their  impressions  of  this  "mountainous  island  in  the  midst  of 
the  ocean."  One,  writing  early  in  the  Christian  era,  gives 
various  interesting  scraps  of  information, — among  others  that  "  the 
men  all  tattoo  their  faces  and  ornament  their  bodies  with  designs, 
differences  of  rank  being  indicated  by  the  position  and  size  of  the 


Tattooing.  451 

patterns."  But  from  the  dawn  of  regular  history  far  down  into  the 
Middle  Ages,  tattooing  seems  to  have  been  confined  to  criminals. 
It  was  used  as  branding  was  formerly  used  in  Europe,  whence 
probably  the  contempt  still  felt  for  tattooing  by  the  Japanese  upper 
classes.  From  condemned  desperadoes  to  bravoes  at  large  is  but 
a  step.  The  swashbucklers  of  feudal  times  took  to  tattooing, 
apparently  because  some  blood  and  thunder  scene  of  adventure, 
engraven  on  their  chest  and  limbs,  helped  to  give  them  a  terrific 
air  when  stripped  for  any  reason  of  their  clothes.  Other  classes 
whose  avocations  led  them  to  baring  their  bodies  in  public 
followed  suit, — the  carpenters,  for  instance,  and  running  grooms 
(beilo) ;  and  the  tradition  remained  of  ornamenting  almost  the 
entire  body  and  limbs  with  a  hunting,  theatrical,  or  other  showy 
scene.  A  poor  artisan  might  end  by  spending  as  much  as  a 
hundred  dollars  on  having  himself  completely  decorated'  in  this 
manner.  Of  course  he  could  not  afford  to  pay  such  a  sum  down 
at  once ;  so  he  was  operated  on  by  degrees  through  a  term  of 
years,  as  money  was  forthcoming. 

Soon  after  the  revolution  of  1868,  a  dire  catastrophe 
occurred  : — the  Government  made  tattooing  a  penal  offence ! 
Some  official,  it  would  seem,  had  got  hold  of  the  idea  that 
tattooing  was  a  barbarous  practice  which  would  render  Japan 
contemptible  in  the  eyes  of  Europe ;  and  so  tattooing,  like  crema- 
tion, was  summarily  interdicted.  Europe  herself  then  came  to 
the  rescue,  in  the  shape  of  two  young  English  princes  who 
visited  Japan  in  1881,  and  who,  learning  that  globe-trotters  had 
sometimes  managed  surreptitiously  to  engage  a  tattooer's  services, 
did  the  like  with  excellent  effect,  Prince  George  (now  Prince  of 
Wales)  being  appropriately  decorated  on  the  arm  with  a  dragon. 
From  that  time  forward,  no  serious  effort  has  been  made  to 
interfere  with  the  tattooer's  art,  and  in  the.  hands  of  such  men  as 
Hori  Chiyo  and  Hori  Yasu*  it  has  become  an  art  indeed, — an  art 

*The  name,  or  nickname,  Hori  is  from  kori-tnono,  "tattooing,"  itself  derived  from 
the  verb  horu,  "to  dig,"  hence  "to  engrave,"  and  mono,  "a  thing."  Hori  Chiyo  I.  is 
no  more,  having  killed  himself  for  love  in  iooo;  but  Hori  Chiyo  II.,  quite  a  young  man, 
reigns  worthily  in  his  stead. 


452  Tea. 

as  vastly  superior  to  the  ordinary  British  sailor's  tattooing  as 
Heidsieck  Monopole  is  to  small  beer.  Birds,  flowers,  landscapes 
of  marvellous  finish  and  beauty — thoroughly  Japanese  withal  in 
style  and  conception — are  now  executed,  some  specimens  being 
so  minute  as  almost  to  render  the  aid  of  a  microscope  necessary 
in  order  properly  to  appreciate  them. 

The  principal  materials  used  are  sepia  and  vermilion, — the 
former  for  the  outline  and  ground,  the  latter  for  touching  up  and 
picking  out  special  details,  for  instance,  a  cock's  crest.  A  brown 
colour  is  occasionally  produced  by  resorting  to  Indian  red.  Prus- 
sian blue,  also  yellow  and  green,  may  likewise  be  employed,  but 
are  considered  dangeous.  The  needles  are  all  of  steel,  the  finest 
being  used  to  prick  in  the  outlines,  the  thicker  ones  for  shading. 
There  are  six  sizes  in  all.  The  most  delicate  work  takes  only 
three  needles ;  but  ordinary  outlines  require  a  row  of  from  four 
to  nine  needles.  Shading  is  done  by  means  of  superposed  rows 
of  needles  tied  together,  as,  for  instance,  five,  four,  and  three, 
making  twelve  in  all,  and  so  on  up  to  as  many  as  sixty.  In  such 
cases  the  thickest  needles  are  employed.  The  needles  are  always 
spliced  to  a  bone  handle  by  means  of  a  silken  thread  ;  and  this 
handle  is  held  in  the  right  hand  leaning  on  the  left,  somewhat 
as  a  billiard  cue  is  held.  Though  an  appreciable  fraction  of  the 
total  length  of  the  needles  protrudes  beyond  the  splicing,  blood 
is  rarely  drawn,  owing  to  the  skill  with  which  the  instrument  is 
manipulated. 

The  most  recent  refinement  of  the  art  is  the  use  of  cocaine, 
either  as  a  wash  or  mixed  with  the  sepia.  But  the  pain,  on  an 
ordinarily  fleshy  arm,  is  not  acute  enough  for  most  persons  to 
care  to  avail  themselves  of  it.  Smooth  arms  are  the  best  to 
operate  on,  hairiness  being  apt  to  make  the  colour  run. 

Tea  is  believed  to  have  been  introduced  into  Japan  from 
China  in  A.  D.  805  by  the  celebrated  Buddhist  saint,  Dengyo 
Daishi.  It  had  long  been  a  favourite  beverage  of  the  Bud- 
dhists   of    the    continent,     whom    it    served    to    keep     wakeful 


Tea. 


453 


during  their  midnight  devotions.  A  pious  legend  tells  us  that 
the  origin  of  the  tea-shrub  was  on  this  wise.  Daruma  (Dharma), 
an  Indian  saint  of  the  sixth  century,  had  spent  many  long  years 
in  ceaseless  prayer  and  watching.  At  last,  one  night,  his  eyelids, 
unable  to  bear  the  fatigue  any  longer,  closed,  and  he  slept  soundly 
until  morning.  When  the  saint  awoke,  he  was  so  angry  with 
his  lazy  eyelids  that  he  cut  them  off  and  flung  them  on  the 
ground.  But  lo  !  each  lid  was  suddenly  transformed  into  a  shrub, 
whose  efficacious  leaves,  infused  in  water,  minister  to  the  vigils 
of  holy  men. 

Though  encouraged  from  the  first  by  Imperial  recommendations, 
tea  culture  made  little  or  no  progress  in  Japan  till  the  close  of  the 
twelfth  century,  when  another  Buddhist,  the  abbot  Myoe,  having 
obtained  new  seeds  from  China,  sowed  them  at  Toga-no-o,  near 
Kyoto,  whence  a  number  of  shrubs  were  afterwards  transplanted 
to  Uji,  which  has  ever  since  been  the  chief  centre  of  Japanese 
tea  growing.  Thenceforward  the  love  of  tea-drinking  was  en- 
grained in  the  Japanese  court  and  aristocracy,  and  the  cha-no-yu, 
or  tea  ceremonies,  became  a  national  institution.  But  it  is  doubtful 
whether  the  custom  of  drinking  tea  began  to  spread  among  the 
lower  classes  till  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century,  which  was 
also  the  time  when  our  own  ancestors  first  took  to  it.  Now, 
needless  to  say  that  the  tea-house  is  one  of  the  most  widely 
spread,  socially  most  important,  and  to  wayfarers  most  agreeable 
of  Japanese  institutions.  Not  but  what  it  is  a  blunder  to  dub 
inns  and  restaurants  "tea-houses,"  as  Europeans  are  apt  to  do. 
The  tea-house  (c/iaya)  is  a  thing  by  itself, — in  the  country  an 
open  shed,  in  the  towns  often  a  pretty,  but  always  open,  house, 
sometimes  with  a  garden,  where  people  sit  down  and  rest  for  a 
short  time,  and  are  served  with  tea  and  light  refreshments  only, 
while  a  few  words  of  gossip  or  innocent  banter  are  exchanged 
with  mine  hostess  or  her  attendant  smiling  damsels.  Of  course, 
"en  tout  bien,  tout  konneur." 

The  tea-plant  belongs  to  the  same  family  of  evergreens  as  the 
camellia,  and  bears  small  white   flowers   slightly   fragrant.     As    a 


454  Tea. 

rule,  the  seeds  are  planted  in  terraces  on  gentle  hill  slopes ;  but 
level  ground  may  also  be  availed  of,  provided  it  be  kept  thoroughly 
drained.  The  shrub  is  not  allowed  to  attain  a  height  of  more 
than  three  or  four  feet.  It  is  ready  for  picking  in  the  third  year, 
but  is  at  its  best  from  the  fifth  to  the  tenth  year.  The  first 
picking  takes  place  at  the  end  of  April  or  beginning  of  May, 
and  lasts  three  or  four  weeks.  There  is  a  second  in  June  or 
July,  and  sometimes  a  third. 

As  soon  as  possible  after  being  picked,  the  leaves  are  placed  in 
a  round  wooden  tray  with  a  brass  wire  bottom  over  boiling  water. 
This  process  of  steaming,  which  is  complete  in  half  a  minute, 
brings  the  natural  oil  to  the  surface.  The  next  and  principal 
operation  is  the  firing,  which  is  done  in  a  wooden  frame  with 
tough  Japanese  paper  stretched  across  it,  charcoal  well-covered 
with  ash  being  the  fuel  employed.  This  first  firing  is  done  at 
a  temperature  of  about  1200  Fahrenheit.  Meanwhile  the  leaf  is 
manipulated  for  hours  by  men  who  roll  it  into  balls  with  the 
palms  of  their  hands.  The  final  result  is  that  each  leaf  becomes 
separately  twisted,  and  changes  its  colour  to  dark  olive  purple. 
Two  more  firings  at  lower  temperatures  ensue,  after  which  the 
leaf  is  allowed  to  dry  until  it  becomes  quite  brittle.  Sometimes 
— and  we  believe  this  to  have  been  the  common  practice  in 
ancient  days — the  leaf  is  not  fired  at  all,  but  only  sun-dried. 

All  genuine  Japanese  tea  is  what  we  should  term  "green." 
It  is  partaken  of,  not  only  at  meal-times,  but  also  at  intervals 
throughout  the  day.  The  cups  are  very  small,  and  no  milk  or 
sugar  is  added.  The  tea  drunk  in  respectable  Japanese  house- 
holds generally  costs  25  to  50  sen  a  lb.,  while  from  1  to  3  yen 
will  be  paid  for  a  better  quality  fit  to  set  before  an  honoured 
guest.  The  choicest  Uji  tea  costs  10  yen  per  lb.  We  have  even 
heard  of  exceptionally  fine  samples  being  charged  for  at  the  rate 
of  25  yen  per  lb.;  but  the  so-called  "best  qualities''"  sold  at  most 
shops  are  only  from  5  to  7  yen.  At  the  opposite  end  of  the 
scale  stands  the  so-called  ba?icha,  the  tea  of  the  lower  classes,  10 
to  15  sen  per  lb.,  made  out  of  chopped  leaves,  stalks,  and  bits  of 


Tea  Ceremonies.  455 

wood  taken  from  the  trimmings  of  the  tea-plant ;  for  this  beverage 
is  tea,  after  all,  little  as  its  flavour  has  in  common  with  that 
of  Bohea  or  of  Uji.  Other  tea-like  infusions  sometimes  to  be 
met  with  are  kosen,  made  by  pouring  hot  water  on  a  mixture 
of  various  fragrant  substances,  such  as  orange-peel,  the  seeds 
of  the  xanthoxylon,  etc.  ;  sakura-yu,  an  infusion  of  salted  cherry- 
blossoms  ;  mugi-yu,  an  infusion  of  parched  barley  ;  mame-cha,  a 
similar  preparation  of  beans.  Fuku-ja,  or  "  luck  tea,"  is  made 
of  salted  plums,  seaweed,  and  xanthoxylon  seeds,  and  is  par- 
taken of  in  every  Japanese  household  on  the  last  night  of  the 
year. 

Japanese  tea,  unlike  Chinese,  must  not  be  made  with  boiling 
water,  or  it  will  give  an  intolerably  bitter  decoction ;  and  the 
finer  the  quality  of  the  tea,  the  less  hot  must  be  the  water  em- 
ployed. The  Japanese  tea  equipage  actually  includes  a  small 
open  jug  called  the  "  water-cooler "  (yu-zamashi),  to  which  the 
hot  water  is,  if  necessary,  transferred  before  being  poured  on 
the  tea-leaves.  Even  so,  the  first  brew  is  often  thrown  away  as 
too  bitter  to  drink.  The  consequence  of  this  is  that  Japanese 
servants,  when  they  first  come  to  an  English  house,  always  have 
to  be  taught  how  to  treat  our  Chinese  or  Indian  tea,  and  generally 
begin  by  giving  practical  proof  of  their  incredulity  on  the  subject 
of  the  indispensable  virtue  of  boiling  water. 

Large  quantities  of  Japanese  tea — as  much  as  40,000,000  lbs. 
in  a  single  season — are  sent  across  the  Pacific  to  the  United 
States  and  Canada,  and  a  large  tea  "  trust "  on  American  lines  has 
even  been  suggested.  What  a  change  in  the  course  of  a  single 
life-time  !  It  is  but  fifty  years  since  an  enterprising  widow  of 
Nagasaki,  named  Oura,  made  the  first  surreptitious  shipment 
of  27  lbs.;  for  no  intercourse  was  then  permitted  with  the  hated 
barbarian. 

Books  recommended.  The  Preparation  of  Japan  Tea,  by  Henry  Gribble,  in  Vol. 
XII.  Part  I.  of  the  "  Asiatic  Transactions."— Rein's  Industries  of  Japan,  p.  ioo. 


Tea  Ceremonies.     Few   things   have    excited  more  interest 


456  Tea  Ceremonies. 

among  collectors  of  Japanese  curios  than  the  cha-no-yu,  or  tea 
ceremonies,  of  which  so  many  of  the  highly  prized  little 
"  japanosities  "  in  their  collections  are  in  one  way  or  another  the 
implements.  And  as  quarrelling  with  other  collectors  is  part  of 
every  true  collector's  nature,  so  also  has  the  battle  raged  round 
the  Japanese  tea-table, — a  veritable  and  literal  storm  in  a  tea-cup. 
One  set  disparages  the  tea  ceremonies  as  essentially  paltry  and 
effeminate,  and  asserts  that  their  influence  has  cramped  the  genius 
of  Japanese  art,  by  confusing  beauty  with  archaism  and  making 
goals  of  characteristics  worthy  only  to  be  starting-points.  The 
opposite  school  sees  in  these  same  ceremonies  a  profoundly 
beneficial  influence, — an  influence  which  has  kept  Japanese  art 
from  leaving  the  narrow  path  of  purity  and  simplicity  for  the 
broad  road  of  a  meretricious  gaudiness. 

What,  then,  are  these  tea  ceremonies.  And  first  of  all,  what 
is  their  history  ?  Have  their  votaries  at  all  epochs  been  enamoured 
of  simplicity  and  archaism  to  the  degree  which  both  friends  and 
foes  seem  to  take  for  granted  ?  If  our  own  slight  researches 
into  the  subject  prove  anything,  they  prove  that  these  traits  are 
comparatively  modern. 

The  tea  ceremonies  have  undergone  three  transformations  during 
the  six  or  seven  hundred  years  of  their  existence.  They  have 
passed  through  a  medico-religious  stage,  a  luxurious  stage,  and 
lastly  an  esthetic  stage.  They  originated  in  tea-drinking  pure 
and  simple  on  the  part  of  certain  Buddhist  priests  of  the  Zen 
sect,  who  found  the  infusion  useful  in  keeping  them  awake  during 
the  performance  of  their  midnight  devotions.  The  first  aristocrat 
whose  name  is  mentioned  in  connection  with  tea  is  Minamoto- 
no-Sanetomo,  Shogun  of  Japan  from  A.D.  1203  to  12 18.  He 
seems  to  have  been  a  youthful  debauchee,  whom  the  Buddhist 
abbot  Eisai  endeavoured  to  save  from  the  wine-cup  by  making 
him  take  tea  instead.  As  is  still  the  custom  of  propagandists, 
Eisai  accompanied  this  recommendation  by  the  gift  of  a  tract 
on  the  subject.  It  was  composed  by  himself,  and  bore  the  title 
of  "  The  Salutary  Influence  of  Tea-Drinking."     In  it  was  explained 


Tea  Ceremonies.  457 

the  manner  in  which  tea  "regulates  the  five  viscera  and  expels 
evil  spirits,"  and  rules  were  given  both  for  making  the  infusion 
and  for  drinking  it.  The  ceremonial  which  Eisai  introduced  was 
religious.  True,  it  comprised  a  simple  dinner;  but  its  main 
feature  was  a  Buddhist  service,  at  which  the  faithful  worshipped 
their  ancestors  to  the  beating  of  drums  and  burning  of  incense. 
A  tinge  of  the  religious  element  has  adhered  to  the  tea  ceremonies 
ever  since.  It  is  still  considered  proper  for  tea  enthusiasts  to 
join  the  Zen  sect  of  Buddhism,  and  it  is  from  the  abbot  of 
Daitokuji  at  Kyoto  that  diplomas  of  proficiency   are  obtained. 

How  long  Japanese  tea-drinking  remained  in  this  first  religious 
stage  is  not  clear.  This  we  know,  that  by  the  year  1330,  the 
second  or  luxurious  stage  had  already  been  reached.  The 
descriptions  of  the  tea-parties  of  those  days  read  like  a  chapter 
of  romance.  The  Daimyos  who  daily  took  part  in  them  reclined 
on  couches  spread  with  tiger  skins  and  leopard  skins.  The  walls 
of  the  spacious  apartments  in  which  the  guests  assembled  were 
hung,  not  only  with  Buddhist  pictures,  but  with  damask  and 
brocade,  with  gold  and  silver  vessels,  and  swords  in  splendid 
sheaths.  Precious  perfumes  were  burnt,  rare  fishes  and  strange 
birds  were  served  up  with  sweetmeats  and  wine,  and  the  point 
of  the  entertainment  consisted  in  guessing  where  the  material  for 
each  cup  of  tea  had  been  produced ;  for  as  many  brands  as 
possible  were  brought  in,  to  serve  as  a  puzzle  or  jeu  de  sociele — 
some  from  the  Toga-no-o  plantations,  some  from  Uji,  some  from 
other  places.  Every  right  guess  procured  for  him  who  made  it 
the  gift  of  one  of  the  treasures  that  were  hung  round  the  room.  But 
he  was  not  allowed  to  carry  it  away  himself.  The  rules  of  the 
tea  ceremonies,  as  them  practised,  ordained  that  all  the  things 
rich  and  rare  that  were  exhibited  must  be  given  by  their  winners 
to  the  singing  and  dancing-girls,  troupes  of  whom  were  present 
to  help  the  company  in  their  carousal.  Vast  fortunes  were 
dissipated  in  this  manner.  On  the  other  hand,  the  arts  were 
benefited,  more  especially  when,  towards  the  close  of  the  fifteenth 
century,  the  luxurious  Yoshimasa,  a  sort  of  Japanese  Lorenzo  de' 


458  Tea  Ceremonies. 

Medici,  abdicated  the  Shogun's  throne  in  order  to  devote  himself 
altogether  to  refined  pleasures  in  his  gorgeous  palace  of  Gin- 
kakuji  at  Kyoto,  in  the  company  of  his  favourites,  the  pleasure- 
loving  Buddhist  abbots  Shuko  and  Shinno.  From  this  trio  of 
royal  and  religious  voluptuaries  are  derived  several  of  the  rules 
for  tea-drinking  that  still  hold  good.  The  tiny  tea-room  of  only 
four  and  a  half  mats  (nine  feet  square)  apparently  dates  from 
then.  Shinno  was  a  great  connoisseur  of  antiquities  and  of  what 
we  now  term  curios.  He  was  also  the  first  to  manufacture  a 
certain  kind  of  teaspoon,  whence  arose  the  custom  of  tea-fanciers 
manufacturing  their  own  spoons. 

All  through  the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries,  the  tea 
ceremonies  continued  to  enjoy  the  unabated  favour  of  the 
Japanese  upper  classes.  The  gift  of  some  portion  of  a  tea-service, 
such  as  a  bowl  or  cup,  was  the  most  valued  mark  of  condescen- 
sion which  a  superior  could  bestow.  We  read  of  high-born 
warriors  neglecting  their  sword  for  the  sake  of  the  tea-pot,  and 
of  their  being  cashiered  therefor,  of  others  dying  bowl  in  hand 
when  their  castles  were  taken  by  the  enemy,  or  sending  their 
tea-things  away  privately  as  their  chiefest  treasure.  Nobunaga 
and  Hideyoshi,  two  of  the  greatest  military  rulers  of  Japan, 
were  both  enthusiastic  votaries  of  the  tea  ceremonies.  Hideyoshi 
probably  gave  the  largest  tea-party  on  record,  the  card  of  invita- 
tion being  in  the  form  of  an  official  edict  which  is  still  pre- 
served. All  the  lovers  of  tea  in  the  empire  were,  by  this  singular 
document,  summoned  to  assemble  at  a  certain  date  under  the 
pine  grove  of  Kitano,  near  Kyoto,  and  to  bring  with  them 
whatever  curios  connected  with  tea-drinking  they  possessed,  it 
being  further  decreed  that  all  such  as  failed  to  respond  to  the 
summons  should  be  debarred  from  ever  taking  part  in  the  tea 
ceremonies  again.  This  was  in  the  autumn  of  1587,  the  time 
when  the  Invincible  Armada  was  being  equipped  for  the  cere- 
monies of  war.  The  tea-party  seems  to  have  been  successful. 
It  lasted  ten  days,  and  Hideyoshi  fulfilled  his  promise  of  drink- 
ing tea  at  every  booth.     The  tenants  of  some  of  the  booths  were 


Tea  Ceremonies.  459 

noblemen,  of  others  traders  or  peasants ; — for  all  were  invited 
regardless  of  birth,  a  proof  that  the  custom  had  begun  to  filter 
down  into  the  lower  strata  of  society. 

A  few  years  later  (1594)  Hideyoshi  called  together  at  his  palace 
of  Fushimi  the  heads  of  all  various  schools  into  which,  by 
this  time,  the  art  of  tea-drinking  had  split  up.  Chief  among 
these  was  Sen-no-Rikyu,  a  name  which  every  Japanese  enthusiast 
reveres, — for  he  it  was,  or  at  least  he  principally,  who  collated, 
purified,  and  (so  to  say)  codified  the  tea  ceremonies,  stamp- 
ing them  with  the  character  wihch  they  have  borne  ever  since. 
Simplicity  had  long  been  commanded  by  the  poverty  of  the 
country,  exhausted  as  it  was  by  ages  of  warfare.  He  took  this 
simplicity  up,  and  raised  it  into  a  canon  of  taste  as  imperative 
as  the  respect  for  antiquity  itself.  The  worship  of  simplicity  and 
of  the  antique  in  objects  of  art,  together  with  the  observance  of  an 
elaborate  code  of  etiquette — such  are  the  doctrine  and  discipline 
of  the  tea  ceremonies  in  their  modern  form,  which  has  never 
varied  since  Sen-no-Rikyii's  day.  Though  not  the  St.  Paul  of  the 
tea  cult,  he  was  thus  its  Luther.  Unfortunately  he  was  not 
indifferent  to  money.  He  abused  his  unrivalled  skill  as  a 
connoisseur  of  curios  to  enrich  himself,  and  to  curry  favour  with 
the  great.  Hideyoshi  at  last  detected  his  venality  and  fraud, 
and  caused  him  to  be  put  to  death. 

The  ceremonies  themselves  have  often  been  described.  They 
include  a  preliminary  dinner,  but  tea-drinking  is  the  chief 
thing.  The  tea  used  is  in  the  form,  not  of  tea-leaves,  but  of 
powder,  so  that  the  resulting  beverage  resembles  pea-soup  in 
colour  and  consistency.*  There  is  a  thicker  kind  called  koi-cha, 
and  a  thinner  kind  called  usu-cka.  The  former  is  used  in  the 
earlier  stage  of  the  proceedings,  the  latter  towards  the  end.  The 
tea  is  made  and  drunk  in  a  preternatural ly  slow  and  formal 
manner,  each  action,  each  gesture  being  fixed  by  an  elaborate 
code  of  rules.     Every  article  connected  with  the  ceremony,  such 

*  Foreign  gourmets  resident  in  Japan  have  discovered  that  a  delicious  ice-cream  can 
be  made  out  of  it. 


460  Telegraphs. 

as  the  tea-canister,  the  incense-burner,  the  hanging  scroll,  and 
the  bouquet  of  flowers  in  the  alcove,  is  either  handled,  or  else 
admired  at  a  distance,  in  ways  and  with  phrases  which  unalterable 
usage  prescribes.  Even  the  hands  are  washed,  the  room  is  swept, 
a  little  bell  is  rung,  and  the  guests  walk  from  the  house  to  the 
garden  and  from  the  garden  back  into  the  house,  at  stated  times 
and  in  a  stated  manner  which  never  varies,  except  in  so  far  as 
certain  schools,  as  rigidly  conservative  as  monkish  confraternities, 
obey  slightly  varying  rules  of  their  own,  handed  down  from  their 
ancestors  who  interpreted  Sen-no-Rikyu?s  ordinances  according  to 
slightly  varying  canons  of  exegesis. 

To  a  European  the  ceremony  is  lengthy  and  meaningless. 
When  witnessed  more  than  once,  it  becomes  intolerably  monoto- 
nous. Not  being  born  with  an  Oriental  fund  of  patience,  he 
longs  for  something  new,  something  lively,  something  with  at 
least  the  semblance  of  logic  and  utility.  But  then  it  is  not  for 
him  that  the  tea  ceremonies  were  made.  If  they  amuse  those 
for  whom  they  were  made,  they  amuse  them,  and  there  is  no- 
thing more  to  be  said.  In  any  case,  tea  and  ceremonies  are 
perfectly  harmless,  which  is  more  than  can  be  affirmed  of  tea 
and  tattle.  No  doubt,  even  the  tea  ceremonies  have,  if  history 
libels  them  not,  been  sometimes  misused  for  purposes  of  political 
conspiracy.  But  these  cases  are  rare.  If  the  tea  ceremonies  do 
not  go  the  length  of  embodying  a  "  philosophy,"  as  fabled  by 
some  of  their  admirers,  they  have,  at  least  in  their  latest  form, 
assisted  the  cause  of  purity  in  art.  Some  may  deem  them  point- 
less.    None  can  stigmatise  them  as  vulgar. 

Book  recommended.     Brinkley's  Japan  and  China,  Vol.   II.  p.  246  et  seg. 

Telegraphs.  The  first  line  of  telegraphs  in  this  country 
may  be  said  to  have  been  experimental ;  it  was  only  840  yards 
in  length,  and  was  opened  for  government  business  in  1869. 
During  the  following  year  Tokyo  and  Yokohama,  and  Osaka 
and  Kobe,  respectively,  were  connected  by  wire,  and  a  general 
telegraphic    system    for    the    empire    was    decided    on ;    but    the 


Telegraphs.  461 

necessary  material  and  a  staff  of  officers  did  not  reach  Japan  until 
the  end  of  1871.  The  line  from  Tokyo  to  Kobe  was  completed 
and  opened  for  traffic  in  the  year  1872,  and  extended  to  Nagasaki 
in   1873. 

On  the  introduction  of  telegraphy  into  Japan,  a  code  was 
devised  on  the  basis  of  the  well-known  "  Morse  code,"  which 
admitted  of  internal  telegrams  being  written  and  transmitted  in 
the  vernacular.  In  that  respect,  as  in  so  many  others,  Japan 
is  unique  among  Eastern  countries.  In  India  and  China,  for 
instance,  telegrams  can  be  transmitted  only  when  written  in 
Roman  letters  or  in  Arabic  figures.  The  new  means  of  com- 
munication being  thus  placed  within  reach  of  the  bulk  of  the 
people,  it  soon  became  familiar  and  popular.  Telephone  ex- 
changes, too,  have  now  been  introduced  in  24  of  the  larger 
towns.      In  Tokyo  there  are  upwards  of  11,600  subscribers. 

The  first  telegraph  lines  were  surveyed,  built,  and  worked 
under  foreign  superintendence,  with  fittings  principally  of  English 
manufacture.  But  the  rapid  progress  made  by  the  Japanese  in 
technical  matters  has  enabled  them  to  dispense  with  foreign 
experts.  With  the  exception  of  submarine  cables,  iron  and 
covered  wires,  and  the  most  delicate  measuring  apparatus,  all 
kinds  of  material  and  instruments  are  turned  out  of  the  Japanese 
workshops,  while  executively  the  system  has  been  maintained 
solely  by  the  native  staff  for  several  years  past.  Submarine  cables 
connect  all  the  principal  islands  of  the  empire,  even  recently 
acquired  Formosa.  Duplicate  cables,  belonging  to  the  Great 
Northern  Telegraph  Company,  connect  Japan  with  Shanghai  on 
the  one  hand,  and  with  Vladivostock  on  the  other.  There  is  also 
one  to  Fusan  in  Korea,  worked  by  the  Japanese  Government. 

The  tariff  for  native  messages,  which  was  framed  on  a  very 
low  basis,  has  met  with  excellent  results.  Though  afterwards  raised, 
it  is  still  probably  under  that  of  any  other  country  in  the  world. 
The  rate  for  a  single  message  of  fifteen  Kana  characters  to  any 
part  of  the  empire  is  20  sen  (fivepence),  with  5  sen  (a  penny 
farthing)  for  every  following    five    Kana  ;    for  city   local  traffic  it 


462  Theatre. 

is  only  10  sen,  or  twopence  halfpenny,  with  3  sen  for  every 
following  five  Kana.  The  name  and  address  of  the  receiver  go 
free.  Telegrams  in  foreign  languages  within  the  empire  are 
charged  at  the  rate  of  5  sen  per  word,  with  a  minimum  charge 
of  25  sen  (sixpence  farthing)  for  the  first  five  words  or  fraction 
of  five  words ;  but  addresses  count.  For  city  local  traffic  it  is 
only  3  sen  per  word,  with  a  minimum  charge  of  15  sen. 

The  number  of  offices  open  for  public  business  at  the  end  of 
1902  was  2,201.  The  length  of  wire  open  at  the  same  date  was 
18,565  miles.  The  number  of  messages  conveyed  during  that 
year  was  over  eighteen  millions,  the  overwhelming  majority  of 
them  being  in  the  native  tongue.  This,  too,  in  a  land  where, 
but  a  generation  ago,  the  hatred  of  foreigners  and  all  their  works 
was  still  so  intense,  especially  in  the  South,  that  linemen  had 
to  be  kept  constantly  busy  repairing  the  hacked  poles !  In 
fact,  many  Japanese  would  not  willingly  pass  under  the  wires, 
and  if  compelled  to  do  so,  would  screen  their  heads  with  open 
fans  to  avert  the  diabolical  influence. 

Theatre.  The  Japanese  theatre  claims  a  peculiar  importance, 
as  the  only  remaining  place  where  the  life  of  Old  Japan  can  be 
studied  in  these  radical  latter  days.  The  Japanese  drama,  too, 
has  an  interesting  history.  It  can  be  traced  back  to  religious 
dances  of  immemorial  antiquity,  accompanied  by  rude  choric 
songs.  An  improvement  was  made  in  these  dances  at  the 
beginning  of  the  fifteenth  century,  when  some  highly  cultivated 
Buddhist  priests  and  the  pleasure-loving  Shogun  Yoshimasa  took 
the  matter  in  hand,  and  inaugurated  a  new  departure  by  combin- 
ing the  religious  dances  with  popular  tales  whose  themes  were 
history  and  legend,  and  with  snatches  of  poetry  culled  from 
various  sources.  It  had  been  the  custom,  during  the  earlier 
Middle  Ages,  for  a  certain  class  of  minstrels  to  recite  the  tales 
in  question  to  the  accompaniment  of  the  lute.  Thus,  on  a  double 
basis,  helped  on  too  perhaps  by  some  echo  from  the  China 
stage,  yet  independently  developed,    the   Japanese    lyrical  drama 


Theatre.  463 

came  into  being.  Edifices — half  dancing-stage,  half  theatre — 
were  built  for  the  special  purpose  of  representing  these  No,  as  the 
performances  were  called  ;  and  though  the  chorus,  which  was  at 
the  same  time  an  orchestra,  remained,  new  interest  was  added  in 
the  shape  of  two  individual  personages,  who  moved  about  and 
recited  portions  of  the  poem  in  a  more  dramatic  manner.  The  re- 
sult was  something  strikingly  similar  to  the  old  Greek  drama.  The 
three  unities,  though  never  theorised  about,  were  strictly  observed 
in  practice.  There  was  the  same  chorus,  the  same  stately  demean- 
our of  the  actors,  who  were  often  masked ;  there  was  the  same 
sitting  in  the  open  air,  there  was  the  same  quasi-religious  strain 
pervading  the  whole.  We  say  "  was  ;  "  but  happily  the  No  are  not 
yet  dead.  Though  shorn  of  much  of  the  formality  and  etiquette 
which  surrounded  them  in  earlier  days,  representations  are  still 
given  by  families  who  have  handed  down  the  art  from  father  to  son 
for  four  hundred  years.  There  is  no  scenery,  but  the  dresses  are 
magnificent.  Even  the  audience,  composed  chiefly  of  noblemen 
and  ladies  of  rank,  is  a  study.  They  come,  not  merely  to  be 
amused,  but  to  learn,  and  they  follow  the  play,  book  in  hand ;  for 
the  language  used,  though  beautiful,  is  ancient  and  hard  of  com- 
prehension, especially  when  chanted.  The  music  is — well,  it  is 
Oriental.  Nevertheless,  when  due  allowance  has  been  made  for 
Orientalism  and  for  antiquity,  it  possesses  a  certain  weird  charm. 
Each  piece  takes  about  an  hour  to  act.  But  the  entire  perform- 
ance occupies  the  greater  part  of  a  day,  as  five  or  six  pieces  are 
given,  and  the  intervals  between  them  filled  up  by  comediettas, 
whose  broad  fun,  delivered  in  old-fashioned  colloquial,  serves  as 
a  foil  to  the  classic  severity  of  the  chief  plays. 

From  the  No  theatres  of  the  high-born  and  learned  to  the 
Shibai  or  Kabuki  theatres  of  the  common  people  is  a  great  descent, 
so  far  as  taste  and  poetry  are  concerned,  though  the  interest  of  the 
more  vulgar  exhibitions,  viewed  as  pictures  of  manners — not  in  the 
world  of  gods  and  heroes,  but  in  that  of  ordinary  Japanese  men 
and  women — will  be  of  greater  interest  to  most  foreign  spectators. 
The  plays  given  at  these  theatres  originated  partly  in  the  comedi- 


464  Theatre. 

ettas  just  mentioned,  partly  in  marionette  dances  accompanied 
by  explanatory  songs,  called  joruri  or  gidayu.  This  explains  the 
retention  of  the  chorus,  although  in  diminished  numbers  and 
exiled  to  a  little  cage  separated  from  the  stage,  where  they  sit 
with  the  musicians.  Hence,  too,  the  peculiar  poses  of  the  actors, 
originally  intended  to  imitate  the  stiffness  of  their  prototypes,  the 
marionettes.  It  was  in  the  sixteenth  century  that  this  class  of 
theatre  took  its  rise.  Oddly  enough,  though  the  founders  of  the 
Japanese  stage  were  two  women,  named  O-Kuni  and  O-Tsu,  men 
alone  have  been  allowed  to  act  at  the  chief  theatres,  the  female 
parts  being  taken  by  males,  as  in  our  own  Shakspeare's  age, 
while  at  a  few  inferior  theatres  the  conditions  are  reversed,  and 
only  women  appear.  It  would  seem  that  immorality  was  feared 
from  the  joint  appearance  of  the  two  sexes,  and  in  sooth  the 
reputation  of  O-Kuni  and  her  companions  was  far  from  spotless.* 
Of  late  years  the  restriction  has  been  relaxed,  and  performances 
by  mixed  troupes  of  actors  and  actresses  may  occasionally  be 
witnessed. 

From  the  beginning,  plays  were  divided  into  two  classes,  called 
respectively  jidai-mono,  that  is  historical  plays,  and  sewa-mono, 
or  dramas  of  life    and    manners.       Chikamatsu    Monzaemon    and 


*  Mr.  Lafcadio  Hearn,  writing  to  us  to  remonstrate  on  this  reference  to  O-Kuni  as 
needlessly  severe,  gives  her  story,  which  is,  as  he  says,  both  picturesque  and  touching. 
It  may  be  taken  as  typical  of  a  whole  class  of  Japanese  love-tales: — 

"She  was  a  priestess  in  the  great  temple  of  Kitsuki,  and  fell  in  love  with  a  swash- 
buckler named  Nagoya  Sanza,  with  whom  she  fled  away  to  Kyoto.  On  the  way  thither, 
her  extraordinary  beauty  caused  a  second  swashbuckler  to  become  enamoured  of  her. 
Sanza  killed  him,  and  the  dead  man's  face  never  ceased  to  haunt  the  girl.  At  Kyoto 
she  supported  her  lover  by  dancing  the  sacred  dance  in  the  dry  bed  of  the  river. 
Then  the  pair  went  to  Yedo  and  began  to  act.  Sanza  himself  became  a  famous  actor. 
After  her  lover's  death  O-Kuni  returned  to  Kitsuki,  where,  being  an  excellent  poetess, 
she  supported  or  at  least  occupied  herself  by  giving  lessons  in  the  art.  But  after- 
wards she  shaved  off  her  hair  and  became  a  nun,  and  built  a  little  temple  in  Kitsuki 
where  she  lived  and  taught.  And  the  reason  why  she  built  the  temple  was  that  she 
might  pray  for  the  soul  of  the  man  whom  the  sight  of  her  beauty  had  ruined.  The 
temple  stood  until  thirty  years  ago;  but  there  is  now  nothing  left  of  it  but  a  broken 
statue  of  the  compassionate  god  Jizo.  The  family  still  live  at  Kitsuki ;  and  until  the 
late  revolution  the  head  of  the  family  was  always  entitled  to  a  share  in  the  profits  of 
the  local  theatre,  because  his  ancestress,  the  beautiful  priestess,  had  founded  the  art." 


Theatre.  465 

Takeda  Izumo,  the  most  celebrated  of  Japanese  dramatists,  divided 
their  attention  equally  between  the  two  styles.  It  may  be  worth 
mentioning  that  both  these  authors  belonged  to  the  eighteenth 
century,  and  that  both  of  them  dramatised  the  vendetta  of  the 
"  Forty-seven  Ronins."  But  Chikamatsu's  most  famous  piece  is 
one  founded  on  the  piratical  adventures  of  Kokusen-ya,  who 
expelled  the  Dutch  from  Formosa  in  1661.  The  Japanese 
Kabuki  theatres  are  amply  provided  with  scenery  and  stage 
properties  of  every  description.  One  excellent  arrangement  is  a 
revolving  centre  to  the  stage,  which  allows  of  a  second  scene 
being  set  up  behind  while  the  first  is  in  course  of  acting.  On 
the  conclusion  of  the  first,  the  stage  revolves,  carrying  away  with 
it  actors,  scenery,  and  all ;  something  entirely  different  greets 
the  spectators'  eyes  without  a  moment's  waiting. 

The  No  actors  were  honoured  under  the  old  regime,  whilst 
the  Kabuki  actors  wrere  despised.  The  very  theatres  in  which 
they  appeared  were  looked  down  on  as  places  too  vile  for  any 
gentleman  to  enter.  Such  outcasts  were  actors  at  that  period  that, 
when  a  census  was  taken,  they  were  denoted  by  the  numerals 
used  in  counting  animals,  thus  ip-piki,  ni-hiki,  not  hilon,  fulari. 
Those  to  whom  Japanese  is  familiar  will  appreciate  the  terrible 
sting  of  the  insult.*  But  these  actors  formed  the  delight  of  the 
shopkeeping  and  artisan  classes,  and  they  supplied  to  whole 
generations  of  artists  their  favourite  objects  of  study.  Most  of 
the  lovely  old  colour-prints  representing  frail  beauties  and  other 
heroines  were  taken,  not  from  the  women  themselves,  but  from  the 
impersonation  of  them  on  the  boards  by  actors  of  the  male  sex. 

With  the  revolution  of  1868,  customs  changed  and  class  pre- 
judices were  much  softened.  Actors  are  ostracised  no  longer. 
Since  1886,  there  has  been  a  movement  among  some  of  the 
leaders  of  Japanese  thought  towards  the  reform  of  the  stage, 
Europe  being  of  course  looked  to  for  models.     No   tangible  result 

*  The  reader  who  knows  German  will  understand  what  is  meant,  when  we  say  that 
it  is  as  if,  in  speaking  of  their  eating,  the  word  fressen  should  have  been  used  instead 
of  essen. 


466  Theatre. 

seems,  however,  to  have  been  produced  as  yet.  For  our  own 
part,  though  favouring  the  admittance  of  actors  into  Japanese 
good  society,  if  their  manners  fit  them  for  such  promotion,  we 
trust  that  the  stage  may  remain,  in  other  respects,  what  it  now 
is — a  mirror,  the  only  mirror,  of  Old  Japan.  When  our  fathers 
invented  railways,  they  did  not  tear  up  the  "  School  for  Scandal," 
or  pull  down  Covent  Garden.  Why  should  the  Japanese  do 
what  amounts  to  the  same  thing?  The  only  reform  called  for 
is  one  which  touches,  not  the  theatre  itself,  but  an  adjunct,  an 
excrescence.  We  mean  the  tea-houses  which  serve  as  ticket 
agencies,  and  practically  prevent  theatre-goers  from  dealing  with 
the  theatre  direct.  Engrossing,  as  these  practical  little  establish- 
ments do,  a  large  portion  of  the  profits  derived  from  the  sale 
of  tickets,  they  are  probably  the  main  cause  of  the  frequent 
bankruptcy  of  the  Tokyo  theatres. 

Talking  of  reform  and  Europeanisation,  it  fell  to  our  lot  some 
years  ago  to  witness  an  amusing  scene  in  a  Japanese  theatre.  The 
times  were  already  ripe  for  change.  A  small  Italian  opera  troupe 
having  come  to  Yokohama,  a  wide-awake  Japanese  manager 
engaged  them,  and  caused  a  play  to  be  written  for  the  special 
purpose  of  letting  them  appear  in  it.  This  play  represented 
the  adventures  of  a  party  of  Japanese  globe-trotters,  who,  after 
crossing  the  Pacific  Ocean  and  landing  at  San  P'rancisco  where 
they  naturally  fall  among  the  Red  Indians  who  infest  that  remote 
and  savage  locality,  at  last  reach  Paris  and  attend  a  performance 
at  the  Grand  Opera.  Thus  were  the  Indian  singers  appropriately 
introduced,  Hamlet-like,  on  a  stage  upon  the  main  stage.  But 
oh  !  the  effect  upon  the  Japanese  audience  !  When  once  they 
had  recovered  from  the  first  shock  of  surprise,  they  were  seized 
with  a  wild  fit  of  hilarity  at  the  high  notes  of  the  prima  domia, 
who  really  was  not  at  all  bad.  The  people  laughed  at  the 
absurdities  of  European  singing  till  their  sides  shook,  and  the 
tears  rolled  down  their  cheeks ;  and  they  stuffed  their  sleeves 
into  their  mouths,  as  we  might  our  pocket-handkerchiefs,  in  the 
vain  endeavour  to  contain  themselves.     Needless  to  say  that  the 


Theatre.  467 

experiment  was  not  repeated.  The  Japanese  stage  betook  itself 
to  its  wonted  sights  and  sounds,  and  the  play-going  public  was 
again  happy  and  contented. 

By  a  curious  fatality,  Japan  has  just  (1903-4)  lost  all  her 
greatest  actors  within  a  few  months  of  each  other, — Danjiiro, 
Kikugoro,  and  Sadanji.  Among  the  lesser  men,  their  survivors, 
Shikwan  and  Gato  perhaps  rank  highest.  The  actress  of  most 
repute  is  Kumehachi,  a  woman  of  over  sixty,  who  excels  in 
young  men's  roles.  "Sada  Yakko"  was  not  locally  known, 
except  as  a  singing-girl,  till  the  echoes  of  her  successes  on  the 
Parisian  stage  in  1900  reverberated  on  Japanese  shores. 

Of  European  authorities  on  the  subject  of  the  Japanese  drama, 
there  are  few  to  mention.  Aston's  History  of  Japanese  Literature 
will  be  found  helpful,  as  usual,  within  the  limits  of  a  narrowly 
restricted  space.  Florenz's  Japanische  Dramen  may  be  recom- 
mended to  those  who  read  German,  together  with  the  same 
author's  versions  of  two  dramas, — Asagao  and  Terakoya.  The 
late  T.  R.  McClatchie,  the  one  European  who  made  a  speciality 
of  the  Japanese  stage,  produced  nothing,  in  his  Japanese  Plays 
Versified,  but  some  English  pieces  in  "  Ingoldsby  Legend  "  style 
on  four  or  five  of  the  chief  subjects  treated  by  the  native 
dramatists.  Though  extremely  entertaining,  they  bear  but  the 
faintest  resemblance  to  their  so-called  originals.  Unfortunately, 
Japanese  plays  are  apt  to  run  to  extreme  length, — five,  seven, 
twelve,  even  as  many  as  sixteen  acts.  Adequately  to  translate 
them  presupposes  an  intimate  knowledge,  not  only  of  several 
phases  of  the  language,  but  of  innumerable  historical  and  literary 
allusions,  obsolete  customs  and  superstitions,  etc.  Even  to 
understand,  or  at  any  rate  to  relish,  such  translations  when 
made,  would  demand  considerable  local  knowledge  on  the  part  of 
the  European  reader.  For  all  these  reasons,  doubtless,  this  field 
has  been  comparatively  neglected  hitherto.  The  No,  though 
more  ancient  and  to  the  Japanese  themselves  far  more  difficult, 
are  in  a  way  easier  to  bring  before  the  foreign  public,  because 
of  their  concise,  clear-cut  character.     The  present  writer,    in   the 


468  Theatre. 

early  days  of  his  Japanese  enthusiasm,  tried  his  hand  at  several 
of  them,  which  were  published,  along  with  other  matter,  in  a 
volume  entitled  1'he  Classical  Poetry  of  the  Japanese,  long  since 
out  of  print.  He  ventures  to  disinter  from  this  limbo  one  of  the 
versions  then  made,  called  The  Robe  of  Feathers,  which  is  founded 
on  an  ancient  tradition  localised  at  Mio,  a  lovely  spot  just  off 
the  Tokaido,  near  the  base  of  Fuji.*  The  prose  portions  are 
rendered  literally,  the  lyrical  passages  perforce  very  freely.  It  is 
hoped  that  the  total  result  may  succeed  in  conveying  to  the 
reader  some  idea  of  the  delicate,  statuesque  grace  of  this  species 
of  composition.  If  he  will  keep  in  mind  that  music  and  dan- 
cing are  of  its  very  essence,  he  may  perhaps  be  brought  to  see 
in  it  a  far-off  counterpart  of  the  Elizabethan  "  masque." 

THE  ROBE  OF  FEATHERS. 

{HA-GOROMO.) 

Dramatis  Persons. 
A  Fairy.        A  Fisherman.        The  Chorus. 
Scene. — The  shore  of  Mio,  on  the  Gulf  of  Suruga. 
[The  piece  opens  with  a  long  recitative,  in  which  the  Fisherman  and  the 
Chorus  describe  the  beauties    of  Mid 's  pine-clad  shore   at  dawn  in  spring. 
The  passage  is  a  beautiful  one  ;  but  after  several  efforts  at  reproducing  it 
in  an  English  form,  the  translator  has  had  to  abandon  the  task  as   impos- 
sible.    At  the  conclusion  of  this  recitative  the  Fisherman  steps  on  shore,  and 
the  action  of  the  piece  commejices  as  follozvs  :  j* — ] 

Fisherman.     As    I    land    on    Mio's    pine-clad   shore  and  gaze  around  me, 
flowers    come    fluttering    down    from    ethereal   space,  strains    of   music    are 

*  See  Murray's  Handbook  fjr  Japan,  7th  edit.,  p.  232. 

t  The   end    of  the    poetical    opening    of  the   piece    is    perhaps  fairly  rendered  by   the 
following  lines :  — 

But  hark  !  methought  I  saw  the  storm-clouds  flying, 

And  heard  the  tempest  rave  : 
Come,  fishermen  !  come  homeward  plying ! — 

But  no !  no  tempest  frets  the  wave : 
'Tis  spring  !  'tis  spring  !  'twas  but  the  morning  breeze, 

That  vocal  grew  th'  eternal  pines  among  ; 
No  murmur  rises  from  th'  unruffled  seas, 

No  storm  disturbs  the  thronging  boatmen's  song ! 


Theatre.  469 

re-echoing,  and  a  more  than  earthly  fragrance  fills  the  air.  Surely  there 
is  something  strange  in  this.  Yes !  from  one  of  the  branches  of  yonder 
pine-tree  hangs  a  beauteous  robe,  which,  when  I  draw  nigh  and  closely 
scan  it,  reveals  itself  more  fair  and  fragrant  than  any  common  mortal's 
garb.  Let  me  take  it  back  to  show  to  the  old  folks  in  the  village,  that 
it  may  be  handed  down  in  our  house  as  an  heirloom. 

Fairy.  Ah !  mine  is  that  apparel !  Wherefore  wouldst  thou  carry  it 
away  ? 

Fisherman.  'Twas  found  by  me,  forsooth,  and  I  shall  take  it  home  with 
me. 

Fairy.  But  'tis  a  fairy's  robe  of  feathers,  a  thing  that  may  not  lightly 
be  bestowed  on  any  mortal  being.  Prithee  leave  it  on  the  branch  from 
which  it  hung. 

Fisherman.  What,  then,  art  thou  thyself  a  fairy,  that  thou  claimest 
possession  of  this  feathery  raiment?  As  a  marvel  for  all  ages  will  I  keep 
it,  and  garner  it  up  among  the  treasures  of  Japan.  No,  no  !  I  cannot  think 
of  restoring  it  to  thee. 

Fairy.  Alas  !  without  my  robe  of  feathers  nevermore  can  I  go  soaring 
through  the  realms  of  air,  nevermore  can  I  return  to  my  celestial  home. 
I  beg  thee,  I  beseech  thee,  therefore,  to  give  it  back  to  me. 

Fisherman.     Nay  !  fairy,  nay  !  the  more  I  hear  thee  plead, 
The  more  my  soul  determines  on  the  deed. 
My  heartless  breast  but  grows  more  cruel  yet ; 
Thou  mayst  not  have  thy  feathers  :  'tis  too  late. 

Fairy.     Speak  not,  dear  fisherman  !  speak  not  that  word  ! 
Ah  !  know'st  thou  not  that,  like  the  hapless  bird 
Whose  wings  are  broke,  I  seek,  but  seek  in  vain, 
Reft  of  my  wings,  to  soar  to  heav'n's  blue  plain? 

Fisherman.     Chain'd  to  dull  earth,  a  fairy  well  may  pine. 

Fairy.     Whichever  way  I  turn,  despair  is  mine ; 

Fisherman.     For  ne'er  the  fisher  will  her  wings  restore, 

Fairy.     And  the  frail  fay  sinks  helpless  evermore. 

Chorus.     Alas !  poor  maiden,  in  thy  quiv'ring  eyne 

Cluster  the  dews  ;  the  flow'rets  thou  didst  twine 
Amidst  thy  tresses  languish  and  decay, 
And  the  five  woes*  declare  thy  fatal  day  ! 

*  Viz.,  the  withering  of  the  crown  of  flowers,  the  pollution  by  dust  of  the  heavenly 
raiment,  a  deadly  sweat,  a  feeling  of  dizzy  blindness,  and  the  loss  of  all  joy. 


4?o  Theatre. 

Fairy.     Vainly  my  glance  doth  seek  the  heav'nly  plain, 
Where  rising  vapours  all  the  air  enshroud, 
And  veil  the  well-known  paths  from  cloud  to  cloud. 

Chorus.     Clouds!  wand'ring  clouds!  she  yearns,  and  yearns  in  vain, 
Soaring  like  you,  to  tread  the  heav'ns  again  ; 
Vainly  she  sighs  to  hear,  as  erst  she  heard. 
The  melting  strains  of  Paradise'  sweet  bird  :* 
That  blessed  voice  grows  faint.     The  heav'n  in  vain 
Rings  with  the  song  of  the  returning  crane ; 
In  vain  she  lists,  where  ocean  softly  laves, 
To  the  free  seagull  twitt'ring  o'er  the  waves ; 
Vainly  she  harks  where  zephyr  sweeps  the  plain  : 
These  all  may  fly,  but  she'll  ne'er  fly  again  ! 

Fisherman.  I  would  fain  speak  a  word  unto  thee.  Too  strong  is  the 
pity  that  overcomes  me,  as  I  gaze  upon  thy  face.  I  will  restore  to  thee 
thy  robe  of  feathers. 

Fairy.     Oh,  joy  !  oh,  joy !  Give  it  back  to  me  ! 

Fisherman.  One  moment !  I  restore  it  to  thee  on  condition  that  thou 
do  first  dance  to  me  now,  at  this  very  hour  and  in  this  very  spot,  one  of 
those  fairy  dances  whose  fame  has  reached  mine  ears. 

Fairy.  Oh,  joy  untold  !  It  is,  then,  granted  to  me  once  more  to  return 
to  heaven  !  And  if  this  happiness  be  true,  I  will  leave  a  dance  behind 
me  as  a  token  to  mortal  men.  I  will  dance  it  here, — the  dance  that 
makes  the  Palace  of  the  Moon  turn  round,  so  that  even  poor  transitory 
man  may  learn  its  mysteries.  But  I  cannot  dance  without  my  feathers. 
Give  them  back  to  me,  I  pray  thee. 

Fisherman.  No,  No !  If  I  restore  to  thee  thy  feathers,  thou  wilt  fly 
home  to  heaven  without  dancing  to  me  at  all. 

Fairy.  Fie  on  thee !  The  pledge  of  mortals  may  be  doubted,  but  in 
heavenly  beings  there  is  no  falsehood. 

Fisherman.     Fairy  maid  !  thou  shamest  me  : 
Take  thy  feathers  and  be  free  ! 

Fairy.     Now  the  maiden  dons  her  wings 

And  rainbow  robes,  and  blithely  sings  : —  ■ 

Fisherman.     Wings  that  flutter  in  the  wind  ! 

Fairy.     Robes  like  flow'rs  with  raindrops  lin'd  ! 
[The  Fairy  begins  to  dance.]  1 

*  Literally,  the  Karyobinga,  a  corruption  of  the  Sanskrit  word  Kalavifigka. 


Theatre.  471 

Fisherman.     See  her  dance  the  roundelay  ! 

Fairy.     This  the  spot  and  this  the  day, 

Chorus.     To  which  our  Eastern*  dancers  trace 
All  their  frolic  art  and  grace. 


Chorus.     Now  list,  ye  mortals  !  while  our  songs  declare 
The  cause  that  gave  to  the  blue  realms  of  air 
The  name  of  firmament.     All  things  below 
From  that  Great  God  and  that  Great  Goddess  flow , 
Who,  first  descending  to  this  nether  earth, 
Ordain'd  each  part  and  gave  each  creature  birth. 
But  older  still,  nor  sway'd  by  their  decree, 
And  firm  as  adamant   eternally, 

Stand  the  wide  heav'ns,  that  nought  may  change  or  shake, 
And  hence  the  name  of  firmament  did  take.-f- 

Fairy.     And  in  this  firmament  a  palace  stands 

Yclept  the  Moon,  built  up  by  magic  hands ; 

Chorus.     And  o'er  this  palace  thirty  monarchs  rule, 
Whereof  fifteen,  until  the  moon  be  full, 
Nightly  do  enter,  clad  in  robes  of  white  ; 
But  who  again,  from  the  full  sixteenth  night, 
One  ev'ry  night  must  vanish  into  space, 
And  fifteen  black-rob'd  monarchs  take  their  place, 
While,  ever  circling  round  each  happy  king, 
Attendant  fays  celestial  music  sing. 

Fairy.     And  one  of  these  am  I. 

*  The  word  "Eastern"  does  not  refer  to  the  position  of  Japan  in  Asia,  but  to  that 
of  the  province  of  Suruga  as  compared  with  the  then  capital,  Kyoto. 

t  The  original  Japanese  word,  whose  derivation  the  Chorus  thus  quaintly  begins  by 
explaining,  is  not  the  firmament  itself,  but  hisakata,  the  "  pillow-word  "  (see  p.  376) 
for  the  firmament,  which  lends  itself  to  a  similar  rough-and-ready  etymology.  This 
passage  has  had  to  be  paraphrased  and  somewhat  amplified  by  help  of  the  commentary 
in  order  to  render  it  intelligible  to  English  readers, — a  remark  which  likewise  applies 
to  the  description  immediately  below  of  the  internal  economy  of  the  lunar  government. 
The  idea  of  the  latter  is  taken  from  Buddhist  sources.  The  Great  God  and  Goddess 
here  mentioned  are  the  Shinto  deities  Izanagi  and  Izanami,  the  creators  of  Japan  and 
progenitors  of  gods  and  men. 


472  Theatre. 

Chorus.     From  those  bright  spheres, 

Lent  for  a  moment,  this  sweet  maid  appears  : 
Here  in  Japan  she  lights  (heav'n  left  behind), 
To  teach  the  art  of  dancing  to  mankind. 

II. 

Chorus.     Where'er  Ave  gaze,  the  circling  mists  are  twining  : 
Perchance  e'en  now  the  moon  her  tendrils  fair* 
Celestial  blossoms  bear. 

Those  flow'rets  tell  us  that  the  spring  is  shining, — 
Those  fresh-blown  flow'rets  in  the  maiden's  hair. 

Fairy.     Blest  hour  beyond  compare  ! 

Fisherman^     Heaven  hath  its  joys,  but  there  is  beauty  here. 
Blow,  blow,  ye  winds  !  that  the  white  cloud-belts  driv'n 
Around  my  path  may  bar  my  homeward  way. 
Not  yet  would  I  return  to  heav'n, 
But  here  on  Mio"s  pine-clad  shore  I'd   stray, 
Or  where  the  moon  in  bright  unclouded  glory 
Shines  on  Kiyomi's  lea, 
And  where  on  Fujiyama's  summit  hoary 
The  snows  look  on  the  sea, 
While  breaks  the  morning  merrily  ! 
But  of  these  three,  beyond  compare, 
The  wave-wash'd  shore  of  Mio  is  most  fair 
When  through  the  pines  the  breath  of  spring  is  playing. — 
What  barrier  rises  'twixt  the  heav'n  and  earth? 
Here,  too,  on  earth  th'  immortal  gods  came  straying, 
And  gave  our  monarchs  birth, 

Fairy.     Who,  in  this  Empire  of  the  Rising  Sun, 
While  myriad  ages  run, 
Shall  ever  rule  their  bright  dominions, 

*  The  inhabitants  of  the  Far  East  see  a  cinnamon-tree  in  the  moon,  instead  of  our 
traditional  "  man."  A  Japanese  poetess  has  gracefully  suggested  that  the  particular 
brilliancy  of  the  autumn  moon  may  come  from  the  dying  tints  of  its  foliage. 

t  In  the  following  song,  as  frequently  elsewhere,  the  Chorus  acts  as  the  mouthpiece 
of  the  chief  personage  present  on  the  scene.  It  should  likewise  be  noted  that  the  lyric 
passages  contain  a  great  number  of  allusions  to,  and  more  or  less  exact  quotations 
from,  the  earlier  poetry.  It  has  not  been  thought  necessary  to  embarrass  the  English 
reader  with  perpetual  explanatory  references.  By  an  educated  Japanese  none  would  be 
required. 


Theatre.  473 

Chorus.     E'en  when  the  feath'ry  shock 

Of  fairies  flitting  past  with  silv'ry  pinions 
Shall  wear  away  the  granite  rock  ! 

III. 


Chorus.     Oh,  magic  strains  that  fill  our  ravish'd  ears ! 
The  fairy  sings,  and  from  the  cloudy  spheres, 
Chiming  in  unison,  the  angels'  lutes, 
Tabrets,  and  cymbals,  and  sweet  silv'ry  flutes, 
Ring  through  the  heav'n  that  glows  with  purple  hues, 
As  when  Someiro's*  western  slope  endues 
The  tints  of  sunset,  while  the  azure  wave 
From  isle  to  isle  the  pine-clad  shores  doth  lave. 
From  Ukishima'sf  slope — a  beauteous  storm — 
Whirl    down   the  flow'rs  :  and  still  that  magic  form, 
Those  snowy  pinions,  flutt'ring  in  the  light, 
Ravish  our  souls  with  wonder  and  delight. 

[The  Fairy  pauses  in  the  dance  to  sing  the  next  couplet,   and 
then  continues  dancing  till  the  end  of  the  piece.] 

Fairy.     Hail  to  the  Kings  that  o'er  the  Moon  hold  sway  ! 
Heav'n  is  their  home,  and  Buddhas,  too,  are  they.J 

Chorus.     The  fairy  robes  the  maiden's  limbs  endue 

Fairy.     Are,  like  the  very  heav'ns,  of  tend'rest  blue; 

Chorus.     Or,  like  the  mists  of  spring,  all  silv'ry  white, 

Fairy.     Fragrant  and  fair, — too  fair  for  mortal  sight  ! 


*  The  Sanskrit  Sumeru,  an  immense  mountain  formed  of  gold,  silver,  and  precious 
stones,  which,  according  to  the  Buddhist  cosmogonists,  forms  the  axis  of  every  universe, 
and  supports  the  various  tiers  of  heavens. 

t  An  alternative  name  for  part  of  the  shore  of  Mio.  Mount  Ashitaka,  mentioned  a 
little  further  on,  is  a  mountain  of  singularly  graceful  shape  rising  to  the  south-east  of 
Fuji,  between  it  and  the  sea. 

%  Or  rather  Bodhisattvas  (Jap.  Bosatsti).  To  be  a  Buddha  is  to  have  reached  the 
highest  degree  of  sanctity,  "  having  thrown  off  the  bondage  of  sense,  perception,  and 
self,  knowing  the  utter  unreality  of  all  phenomena,  and  being  ready  to  enter  into 
Nirvana."  A  Bodhisattva,  on  the  other  hand,  has  still  to  pass  once  more  through 
human  existence  before  attaining  to  Buddhahood.  Readers  will  scarcely  need  to  be 
told  that  "  Buddha "  was  never  the  personal  name  of  any  one  man.  It  is  simply  a 
common  noun  meaning  "awake,"  "enlightened,"  whence  its  application  to  beings  lit 
with  the  full  beams  of  spiritual  perfection. 


474 


Time. 


Chorus.     Dance  on,  sweet  maiden,  through  the  happy  hours  ! 
Dance  on,  sweet  maiden,  while  the  magic  flow'rs 
Crowning  thy  tresses  flutter  in  the  wind 
Rais'd  by  thy  waving  pinions  intertwin'd  ! 
Dance  on  !  for  ne'er  to  mortal  dance  'tis  giv'n 
To  vie  with  that  sweet  dance  thou  bring'st  from  heav'n 
And  when,  cloud-soaring,  thou  shalt  all  too  soon 
Homeward  return  to  the  full-shining  Moon, 
Then  hear  our  pray'rs,  and  from  thy  bounteous  hand 
Pour  sev'nfold  treasures  on  our  happy  land  ; 
Bless  ev'ry  coast,  refresh  each  panting  field, 
That  earth  may  still  her  proper  increase  yield  ! 

But  ah  !  the  hour,  the  hour  of  parting  rings  ! 

Caught  by  the  breeze,  the  fairy's  magic  wings 

Heav'nward  uplift  her  from  the  pine-clad  shore, 

Past  Ukishima's  widely-stretching  moor, 

Past  Ashitaka's  heights,  and  where  are  spread 

The  floating  clouds  on  Fujiyama's  head, — 

Higher  and  higher  to  the  azure  skies, 

Till  wand'ring  vapours  shroud  her  from  our  eyes  ! 


Time.  Official  and  educated  Japan  is  now  entirely  European 
and  commonplace  in  her  manner  of  reckoning  time.  Inquisi- 
tive persons  may,  however,  like  to  take  a  peep  at  her  earlier 
and  more  peculiar  methods,  which  are  still  followed  by  the 
peasantry  of  certain  remote  districts.  Old  Japan  had  no  minutes, 
her  hours  were  equivalent  to  two  European  hours,  and  they  were 
counted  thus,  crab-fashion  : — 


12 

2 

4 

6 

8 
io 


o'clock 


m.  and  p.m. 


9  o'clock  (kokonolsu-doki),  our 

8  o'clock  (yalsu-doki),  „ 

7  o'clock  (nanatsn-doki),      ,, 

6  o'clock  (mutsu-doki),         ,, 

5  o'clock  (itsntsu-doki),        ,, 

4  o'clock  (yotsu-doki),  ,, 

Half-past  nine  (kokonotsu  hart)  was  equivalent  to  our  one 
o'clock,  and  similarly  in  the  case  of  all  the  other  intermediate 
hours,  down  to  half-past  four  which  was  equivalent  to  our  eleven 


Time.  475 

o'clock.  But  the  hours  were  never  all  of  exactly  the  same 
length,  except  at  the  equinoxes.  In  summer  those  of  the  night 
were  shorter,  in  winter  those  of  the  day.  This  was  because  no 
method  of  obtaining  an  average  was  used,  sunrise  and  sunset 
being  always  called  six  o'clock  throughout  the  year.  Why,  it 
will  be  asked,  did  they  count  the  hours  backwards?  A  case  of 
Japanese  topsy-turvydom,  we  suppose.  But  then  why,  as  there 
were  six  hours,  not  count  from  six  to  one,  instead  of  beginning 
at  so  arbitrary  a  number  as  nine  ?  The  reason  is  this  : — three 
preliminary  strokes  were  always  struck,  in  order  to  warn  people 
that  the  hour  was  about  to  be  sounded.  Hence  if  the  numbers 
one,  two,  and  three  had  been  used  to  denote  any  of  the  actual 
hours,  confusion  might  have  arisen  between  them  and  the  prelim- 
inary strokes,  —  a  confusion  analogous  to  that  which,  in  our 
own  still  imperfect  method  of  striking  the  hour,  leaves  us  in 
doubt  whether  the  single  stroke  we  hear  be  half-past  twelve, 
one  o'clock,  half-past  one,  or  any  other  of  the  numerous 
half-hours.  Old-fashioned  clocks,  arranged  on  the  system  just 
described,  are  still  sometimes  exposed  for  sale  in  the  curio-shops, 
They  were  imitated,  with  the  necessary  modifications,  from  Dutch 
models,  but  never  passed  into  general  use. 

The  week  was  not  known  to  Old  Japan,  nor  was  there  any 
popular  division  roughly  corresponding  to  it.  Early  in  the 
present  reign,  however,  there  was  introduced  what  was  called 
the  Ichi-Roku,  a  holiday  on  all  the  ones  and  sixes  of  the  month. 
But  this  arrangement  did  not  last  long.  Itself  imitated  from  our 
Sunday,  the  copy  soon  gave  way  to  the  original.  Sunday  is 
now  kept  as  a  day  of  rest  from  official  work,  and  of  recreation. 
Even  the  modern  English  Saturday  half-holiday  has  made  its 
way  into  Japan.  Sunday  being  in  vulgar  parlance  Dontaku* 
Saturday  is  called  (in  equally  vulgar  parlance)  Ha?i-don,  that  is, 
" half-wSunday,"  while  Wednesday  is  Naka-don,  or  "mid [-way 
between]   Sunday [s]." 

*  A  corruption  of  the  Dutch  Zondag. 


476  Time. 

But  to  return  to  Old  Japan.  Her  months  were  real  moons, 
not  artificial  periods  of  thirty  or  thirty-one  days.  They  were 
numbered  one,  two,  three,-  four,  and  so  on.  Only  in  poetry 
did  they  bear  proper  names,  such  as  January,  February,  and 
the  rest  are  in  European  languages.  The  year  consisted  of 
twelve  such  moons,  with  an  intercalary  one  whenever  New 
Year  would  otherwise  have  fallen  a  whole  moon  too  early. 
This  happened  about  once  in  three  years.  Japanese  New  Year 
took  place  late  in  our  January  or  in  the  first  half  of  February  ; 
and  that,  irrespective  of  the  state  of  the  temperature,  was 
universally  regarded  as  the  beginning  of  spring.  Snow  or  no 
snow,  the  people  laid  aside  their  wadded  winter  gowns.  The 
plum-blossoms,  at  least,  were  always  there  to  prove  that  spring 
had  come  ;  and  if  the  nightingale  was  yet  silent,  that  was  not 
the  Japanese  poets'  fault,  but  the  nightingale's. 

Besides  the  four  great  seasons  of  spring,  summer,  autumn, 
and  winter,  there  were  twenty-four  minor  periods  {selsu)  of 
some  fifteen  days  each,  obtained  by  dividing  the  real,  or  ap- 
proximately real,  solar  year  of  three  hundred  and  sixty-five 
days  by  twenty-four.  These  minor  periods  had  names,  such 
as  Risshun,  "  Early  Spring  ;  "  Kanro,  "  Cold  Dew ;  "  Shoktin, 
"  Lesser  Cold  ;  "  Daikan,  "  Greater  Cold."  In  addition  to  this, 
years,  days,  and  hours  were  all  accounted  as  belonging  to  one 
of  the  signs  of  the  zodiac  (Jap.  ju-ni-shi),  whose  order  is  as 
follows  : — 

1  Ne*         the  Rat.  7   Uma,         the  Horse. 


Ushi,  „  Bull.  8  Hitsuji, 

3   Tor  a,  „  Tiger.  9  Saru, 

\    U,  „  Hare.  10  Tori, 

5  Ta/su,  „  Dragon.  1 1  Inu, 

6  Mi,  „  Serpent.  12  /, 


Goat. 

Ape. 

Cock. 

Dog. 

Boar. 


*  Ne  is  short  for  nezwni,  the  real  word  for  "rat."  In  like  manner,  u  stands  for 
usagi,  and  mi  for  hebi.  I  is  not  an  abbreviation  of  inoshishi,  the  modern  popular  name 
for  a  "boar,"  but  the  genuine  ancient  form  of  the   word. 


Time.  477 

The  Japanese  have  also  borrowed  from  Chinese  astrology  what 
are  termed  the  jik-kan,  or  "ten  celestial  stems," — a  series  obtained 
by  dividing  each  of  the  five  elements  into  two  parts,  termed 
respectively  the  "  elder  "  and  the  "  younger  brother  "  (e  and  to). 
The  following  series  is  thus  obtained  : — 

1  Ki  no  E, Wood — Elder  Brother. 

2  Ki  no  To, Wood — Younger  Brother. 

3  Hi  no  E, Fire    — Elder  Brother. 

4  Hi  no   To, Fire    — Younger  Brother. 

5  Tsuchi  no  E,     . .      .  .      . .  Earth  — Elder  Brother. 

6  Tsuchi  no  To, Earth  — Younger  Brother. 

7  Ka*  no  E,        Metal— Elder  Brother. 

8  Ka  no  To, Metal  — Younger  Brother. 

9  Mizu  no  E,       Water — Elder  Brother. 

10  Mizu  no  To,      Water — Younger  Brother. 

The  two  series — celestial  stems  and  signs  of  the  zodiac — being 
allowed  to  run  on  together,'  their  combination  produces  the  cycle 
of  sixty  days  or  sixty  years,  as  sixty  is  the  first  number  divisible 
both  by  ten  and  by  twelve.  The  first  day  or  year  of  the  cycle 
is  Ki  no  E,  Ne,  "  Wood — Elder  Brother,  Rat ;  "  the  second  is 
Ki  no  To,  Ushi,  "  Wood — Younger  Brother,  Bull ;  "  and  so  on, 
until  the  sixtieth,  Mizu  no  To,  1,  "  Water — Younger  Brother, 
Boar,"'  is  reached,  and  the  cycle  begins  again. 

These  things,  especially  the  lunar  calendar,  still  largely  influence 
the  daily  actions  of  the  people.  The  peasantry  scrupulously 
observe  the  traditional  times  and  seasons  in  all  the  operations 
of  agriculture.  For  instance,  they  sow  their  rice  on  the  eighty- 
eighth  day  (Hachi-jii-hachi  yd)  from  the  beginning  of  spring 
(Risshuri),  and  they  plant  it  out  in  Nyiibai,  the  period  fixed  for 
the  early  summer  rains.  The  210th.  and  220th.  from  the 
beginning  of  spring  {Ni-hyaku  tidka  and  Ni-hyaku  hatsuka,  generally 
coinciding  with  our  1st  and  10th.  September  respectively),  and 
what    is    called    Hassaku,    that    is,    the    first    day    of   the  eighth 

*  Short  for  kane,  "metal." 


478  Time. 

moon,  Old  Calendar,  are  looked  on  as  days  of  special  importance 
to  the  crops,  which  are  certain  to  be  injured  if  there  is  a  storm, 
because  the  rice  is  then  in  flower.  They  fall  early  in  September, 
just  in  the  middle  of  the  typhoon  season.  St.  Swithin's  day 
has  its  Japanese  counterpart  in  the  Ki  no  E  Ne,  mentioned 
above  as  the  first  day  of  the  sexagesimal  cycle,  which  comes 
round  once  in  every  two  months  approximately.  If  it  rains,  it 
will  rain  for  that  whole  cycle,  that  is,  for  sixty  days  on  end. 
Again,  if  it  rains  on  the  first  day  of  a  certain  period  called 
Hassen,  of  which  there  are  six  in  every  year,  it  will  rain  for  the 
next  eight  days.  These  periods,  being  movable,  may  come  at 
any  season.  Quite  a  number  of  festivals,  pilgrimages  to  temples, 
and  other  functions  depend  on  the  signs  of  the  zodiac.  Thus, 
the  mayu-dama,  a  sort  of  Christmas  tree  decorated  with  cakes 
in  honour  of  the  silkworm,  makes  its  appearance  on  whatever 
date  in  January  may  happen  to  be  the  "  First  Day  of  the 
Hare"  {Ualsu-U). 

We  have  said  that  official  Japan  has  quite  Europeanised  herself 
so  far  as  methods  of  computing  time  are  concerned.  The  assertion 
was  too  sweeping.  Although  the  Gregorian  calendar  has  been 
in  force  ever  since  the  ist  January,  1873,  she  has  not  yet  been 
able  to  bring  herself  to  adopt  the  Christian  era.  Not  only  would 
the  use  of  this  era  symbolise  to  the  Shinto  Court  of  Japan  the 
supremacy  of  a  foreign  religion ; — it  would  be  derogatory  from 
a  political  point  of  view,  the  fixing  of  the  calendar  from  time 
to  time,  together  with  the  appointing  of  "  year-names,"  *  having 
ever  been  looked  on  in  the  Far  East  as  among  the  inviolable 
privileges  and  signs  of  independent  sovereignty,  much  as  coining 
money  is  in  the  West.  China  has  its  own  year-names,  which  it 
proudly  imposes  on  such  vassal  states  as  Thibet.  Japan  has 
other  year-names.  The  names  are  chosen  arbitrarily.  In  China 
the  plan  was  long  ago  introduced  of  making  each  year-name 
coincide  with  the  reign  of  an  emperor.  This  has  not  hitherto 
been  the  case  in  Japan,  though  an  official  notification  has   been 

*  In  Japanese,  nengo. 


Time.  479 

issued  to  the  effect  that  reigns  and  year-names  shall  so  coin- 
cide in  future.  Either  way,  the  confusion  introduced  into  the 
study  of  history  may  be  easily  imagined.  Hardly  any  Japanese 
knows  all  the  year-names  even  of  his  own  country.  The  most 
salient  ones  are,  it  is  true,  employed  in  conversation,  much  in 
the  same  way  as  we  speak  of  the  sixteenth  century,  or  of  the 
Georgian  and  Victorian  eras.  Such  are  Engi  (A.D.  901 — 923), 
celebrated  for  the  legislation  then  undertaken;  Genroku  (1688 — 
1704),  a  period  of  great  activity  in  various  arts;  Tempo  (1830 — 
1844),  the  last  brilliant  period  of  feudalism  before  its  fall.  But 
no  one  could  say  offhand  how  many  years  it  is  from  one  of  these 
periods  to  another.  In  1872  an  attempt  was  made  to  introduce, 
as  the  Japanese  era  from  which  all  dates  should  be  counted, 
the  supposed  date  of  the  accession  of  Jimmu  Tenno,  the 
mythical  founder  of  the  Imperial  line  ;  and  this  system  still  has 
followers.  Jimmu's  reign  being  held  to  have  commenced  in  the 
year  B.C.  660,  all  dates  thus  reckoned  exceed  by  the  number  six 
hundred  and  sixty  the  European  date  for  the  same  year.  Thus, 
1905  is  2565. 
The  following  is  a  list  of  the  year-names  of  the  past  century  :  — 


Kyuwa, 

1801- 

-1804.* 

Ansei, 

1854- 

-1860. 

Bunkwa, 

1804- 

-1818. 

Man- en, 

1860- 

-1861. 

Bunsei, 

1818- 

-1830. 

Bunkyu, 

1861- 

-1864. 

Tempo, 

1830- 

-1844. 

Genji, 

1864- 

-1865. 

Kdhva, 

1844- 

-1848. 

Keid, 

1865- 

-1868. 

Kaei, 

1848- 

-1854. 

Mciji> 

1868- 

The  present  year,  1904,  is  the  thirty-seventh  year  of  Meiji. 
Astrologically  speaking,  it  is  Ki  no  E  Talsu,  "  Wood — Elder 
Brother,   Dragon." 

Books  recommended.  Japanese  Chronological  Tables,  by  William  Bramsen.  This 
work  has  an  elaborate  introduction  to  the  whole  subject ;  and  the  tables  are  so  arranged 
as  to  show,  not  only  the  European  year,  but  the  exact  day  to  which  any  Japanese  date, 
from  A.D.  645  onwards,  corresponds.  Shorter  tables,  sufficient  for  most  purposes,  will 
be  found  in  the  Introduction  to  Murray's  Handbook  for  Japan. 

*  It  may  be  asked:  Why  not  take  KyZwa  as  equivalent  to  1801 — 3,  Bunkwa  as 
equivalent  to  1804 — 17,  and  so  on  in  every  case,  instead  of  counting  the  final  and  initial 
years  of  each  period  twice?  The  reason  is  that  no  new  name  ever  came  into  force  on 
the  1st  January.     In  most  cases  the  year  was  well-advanced  before  it  was  adopted. 


480  Topsy-turvydom. 

Tobacco  was  introduced  into  Japan  by  the  Portuguese 
towards  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century,  and  was  first  planted 
in  1605.  As  in  other  countries,  here  too  officialdom  strove  to 
impede  its  use;  but  by  165 1  the  law  was  so  far  relaxed  as  to 
permit  smoking,  though  only  out-of-doors.  Now  there  is 
hardly  a  man  or  woman  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of 
the  land  who  does  not  enjoy  the  fragrant  weed ;  for,  as  an 
anonymous  author  quoted  by  Sir  Ernest  Satow  sarcastically 
remarks,  "  Women  who  do  not  smoke  and  priests  who  keep  the 
prescribed  rules  of  abstinence,  are  equally  rare."  Nevertheless, 
a  reaction  has  begun  to  make  itself  felt, — a  reaction  grounded 
in  the  fear  of  national  deterioration  caused  by  the  visibly  deleteri- 
ous effects  of  smoking  on  the  physique  of  school-children.  A 
law  was  accordingly  passed  in  1900,  prohibiting  this  indulgence 
to  minors,  that  is,  to  all  persons  under  the  age  of  twenty. 

Tobacco  has  been  a  government  monopoly  for  the  last  seven 
or  eight  years ;  but  the  total  area  of  cultivation  fixed  for  each 
year  varies  so  widely  as  to  render  statistics  on  the  subject 
practically  useless.  Of  the  numerous  varieties  of  Japanese 
tobacco,  the  most  esteemed  is  Kokubu,  which  is  growrn  in  the 
provinces  of  Satsuma  and  Osumi ;  but  the  plan  commonly 
followed  by  dealers  is  to  make  blends  of  two  or  more  sorts. 
Prices  vary  from  30  sen  up  to  1  yen  for  100  me,  that  is,  a  little 
less  than  1  lb.,  but  are  expected  soon  to  double.  All  Japanese 
tobacco  is  light,  and  consequently  well-suited  for  use  in  the 
form  of  cigarettes.  One  of  the  countless  ways  in  which  the 
nation  is  Europeanising  itself  is  by  the  adoption  of  cigarette- 
smoking.  But  the  tiny  native  pipe — it  looks  like  a  doll's  pipe 
— holds  its  own  side  by  side  with  the  new  importation.  (See 
also  Article  on  Pipes.) 

Book  recommended.      The    Introduction   of   Tobacco   into    Japan,    by  Sir  Ernest 
Satow,  in  Vol.  II.  of  the  "Asiatic  Transactions." 

Topsy-turvydom.  It  has  often  been  remarked  that  the 
Japanese  do  many  things  in  a  way  that  runs  directly  counter  to 
European  ideas  of  what  is  natural  and  proper.     To  the  Japanese 


Topsy-tur  vydom.  481 

themselves  our  ways  appear  equally  unaccountable.  It  was  only 
the  other  day  that  a  Tokyo  lady  asked  the  present  writer  why 
foreigners  did  so  many  things  topsy-turvy,  instead  of  doing  them 
naturally,  after  the  manner  of  her  country-people.  Here  are  a 
few  instances  of  this  contrariety  : — 

Japanese  books  begin  at  what  we  should  call  the  end,  the 
word  finis  ($£-)  coming  where  we  put  the  title-page.  The 
foot-notes  are  printed  at  the  top  of  the  page,  and  the  reader 
inserts  his  marker  at  the  bottom.  In  newspaper  paragraphs,  a 
large  full  stop  is  put  at  the  begifining  of  each. 

Men  make  themselves  merry  with  wine,  not  after  dinner,  but 
before.     Sweets  also  come  before  the  pieces  de  resistance. 

The  whole  method  of  treating  horses  is  the  opposite  of  ours. 
A  Japanese  (of  the  old  school)  mounts  his  horse  on  the  right  side, 
all  parts  of  the  harness  are  fastened  on  the  right  side,  the  mane 
is  made  to  hang  on  the  left  side ;  and  when  the  horse  is  brought 
home,  its  head  is  placed  where  its  tail  ought  to  be,  and  the 
animal  is  fed  from  a  tub  at  the  stable  door. 

Boats  are  hauled  up  on  the  beach  stern  first. 

On  leaving  an  inn,  you  fee  not-  the  waiter,  but  the  proprietor. 

The  Japanese  do  not  say  "  north-east,"  "  south-west,"  but 
"  east-north,"   "  west-south." 

They  carry  babies,  not  in  their  arms,  but  on  their  backs. 

In  addressing  a  letter  they  employ  the  following  order  of 
words  :  "  Japan,  Tokyo,  Akasaka  district,  such-and-such  a  street, 
19  Number,  Smith  John  Mr." — thus  putting  the  general  first,  and 
the  particular  afterwards,  which  is  the  exact  reverse  of  our  method. 

Many  tools  and  implements  are  used  in  a  way  which  is 
contrary  to  ours.  For  example,  Japanese  keys  turn  in  instead 
of  out,  and  Japanese  carpenters  saw  and  plane  towards,  instead 
of  away  from,  themselves. 

The  best  rooms  in  a  house  are  at  the  back  ;  the  garden,  too, 
is  at  the  back.  When  building  a  house,  the  Japanese  construct 
the  roof  first ;  then,  having  numbered  the  pieces,'  they  break  it 
up  again,  and  keep  it  until  the  substructure  is  finished. 


482  Torii. 

In  making  up  accounts,  they  write  down  the  figures  first,  the 
corresponding  items  next. 

Politeness  prompts  them  to  remove,  not  their  head-gear,  but 
their  foot-gear. 

Their  needle-work  sometimes  curiously  reverses  European 
methods.  Belonging  as  he  does  to  the  inferior  sex,  the  present 
writer  can  only  speak  hesitatingly  on  such  a  point.  But  a  lady 
of  his  acquaintance  informs  him  that  Japanese  women  needle 
their  thread  instead  of  threading  their  needle,  and  that  instead  of 
running  the  needle  through  the  cloth,  they  hold  it  still  and  run 
the  cloth  upon  it.  Another  lady,  long  resident  in  Tokyo,  says 
that  the  impulse  of  her  Japanese  maids  is  always  to  sew  on  cuffs, 
frills,  and  other  similar  things,  topsy-turvy  and  inside  out.  If  that 
is  not  the  ne  plus  ultra  of  contrariety,  what  is  ? 

Men  in  Japan  are  most  emphatically  not  the  inferior  sex. 
When  (which  does  not  often  happen)  a  husband  condescends 
to  take  his  wife  out  with  him,  it  is  my  lord's  jinrikisha  that 
bowls  off  first.  The  woman  gets  into  hers  as  best  she  can,  and 
trundles  along  behind.  Still,  women  have  some  few  consolations. 
In  Europe,  gay  bachelors  are  apt  to  be  captivated  by  the  charms 
of  actresses.  In  Japan,  where  there  are  no  actresses  to  speak  of, 
it  is  the  women  who  fall  in  love  with  fashionable  actors. 

Strangest  of  all,  after  a  bath  the  Japanese  dry  themselves  with 
a  damp  towel  ! 

Torii  is  the  name  of  the  peculiar  gateway,  formed  of  two 
upright  and  two  horizontal  beams,  which  stands  in  front  of 
every  Shinto  temple.  According  to  the  orthodox  account,  it  was 
originally  a  perch  for  the  sacred  fowls  (tori— "  fowl ;  "  i,  from 
iru,  =  " dwelling"),  which  gave  warning  of  daybreak;  but  in  later 
times — its  origin  being  forgotten — it  came  to  be  regarded  as  a 
gateway  or  even  as  a  merely  symbolic  ornament,  so  that  whole 
avenues  of  torii  were  sometimes  erected,  while  the  Buddhists  also 
adopted  it,  employing  it  to  place  tables  on  with  inscriptions, 
and  ornamenting  it  in  various  newfangled  ways,  such  as  turning 


Torii.  483 

up  the  corners  of  the  transverse  beams,  etc.,  etc.  Accordingly, 
when  the  "  purification  "  of  the  Shinto  temples  took  place*  after 
the  restoration  of  the  Mikado  in  1868,  one  of  the  earliest  official 
acts  was  the  removal  of  these  tablets.  Ever  since  that  time, 
too,  the  simplest  form  of  torii  has  alone  been  set  up,  because 
alone  considered  ancient  and  national. 

The  present  writer's  opinion,  founded  partly  on  a  comparison 
of  the  Japanese  and  Luchuan  forms  of  the  word  (jap.  /or it) 
Luch.  luri),  is  that  the  orthodox  etymology  and  the  opinions 
derived  from  it  are  alike  erroneous,  that  the  origin  both  of  the 
word  and  of  the  thing  is  obscure,  but  that  indications  deserving 
consideration  point  to  the  probability  of  both  having  been  brought 
over  from  the  Asiatic  continent.  The  Koreans  erect  somewhat 
similar  gateways  at  the  approach  to  their  royal  palaces;  the 
Chinese  p'ailou,  serving  to  record  the  virtues  of  male  or  female 
worthies,  seem  related  in  shape  as  well  as  in  use ;  and  the 
occurrence  of  the  word  turan  in  Northern  India  and  of  the  word 
tori  in  Central  India,  to  denote  gateways  of  strikingly  cognate 
appearance,  gives  matter  for  reflection.  Finally,  we  have  the 
fundamental  fact  that  almost  every  Japanese  art  and  almost 
every  Japanese  idea  can  be  traced  back  ultimately  to  the  Asiatic 
mainland, — an  intellectual  dependence  so  constant  as  to  raise  a 
strong  presumption  in  favour  of  a  Chinese  or  Buddhist  (that  is 
Indian)  origin  for  any  obscure  individual  item. 

Mr.  Aston,  a  great  authority  in  such  matters,  agrees  in  believ- 
ing that  the  thing — the  torii  itself — was  imported  from  abroad 
(probably  about  A. D.  770),  but  holds  that  it  was  fitted  with  a 
pre-existing  native  name,  which  would  have  originally  designated 
"a  lintel"  before  it  came  to  have  its  present  sacred  association. 

Books  recommended.  The  linguistic  argument  (appreciable  only  by  specialists) 
will  be  found  in  a  paper  by  the  present  writer  in  the  "Journal  of  the  Anthropological 
Institute  of  Great  Britain  "  for  1895,  entitled  A  Preliminary  Account  of  the  Luchuan 
Language.  See  also  Toriwi  and  its  Derivation,  by  W.  G.  Aston,  in  Vol.  XXVII.  Part 
IV.  of  the  '*  Asiatic  Transactions,"  and  Notes  on  the  Japanese  Torii,  by  S.  Tuke,  in  Vol. 
IV.  of  the  "  Transactions  of  the  Japan  Society  of  London." 

*.See  p.  422. 


484  Towels. 

Towels.  The  Japanese  cotton  towel,  generally  a  yard  long 
by  a  foot  wide,  serves  various  purposes  besides  that  of  drying 
the  hands  or  the  body.  Both  sexes  occasionally  employ  it  as 
a  head-dress.  Male  artisans  and  coolies  twist  and  then  tie  a 
towel  across  their  foreheads  to  prevent  the  perspiration  from 
running  down  into  their  eyes,  while  females  of  the  same  class 
make  shift  with  one  as  a  sort  of  light  hood  to  cover  the  head. 
When  doing  the  room  of  a  morning,  the  maid  of  all  work  will 
save  her  hair  in  this  way  from  the  dust,  and  whole  families 
may  be  seen  thus  protected  on  the  occasion  of  the  great  annual 
house-cleaning.  Holiday-makers  sometimes  protect  their  hair 
by  the  same  device,  and  there  is  actually  a  special  kind  entitled 
hana-mi-denugui,  or  "  flower-viewing  towel,"  worn  by  festive 
bands  who  sally  forth  to  admire  the  cherry-blossoms,  and  who 
— must  it  be  owned  ? — sacrifice  not  only  to  Flora,  but  to 
Bacchus,  for  which  reason  the  wine-cup  and  the  liquor-loving 
tortoise  figure  as  the  motives  of  ornamentation  along  with  the 
pink  blossom.  For  observe  that  towels  afford  a  typical  example 
of  the  national  fondness  for  decorating  even  the  most  trivial 
articles  of  daily  use.  A  study  of  them,  as  they  flutter  in  the 
wind  under  the  eaves  of  the  shops  devoted  to  their  sale,  would 
result  in  acquaintance  with  the  whole  gamut  of  popular  art 
motives  and  symbolism.  The  vegetable  world,  the  animal 
world  both  real  and  mythical,  the  stage  and  the  wrestling  ring, 
crests,  riddles,  Chinese  ideographs  congratulatory  or  otherwise 
characteristic, — all  these  and  various  other  stores  are  drawn  up- 
on, the  same  subject  being  repeated  in  such  a  multiplicity  of 
elaborated  and  abbreviated  forms  that  not  a  little  ingenuity  is 
sometimes  needed  to  discover  the  artist's  intention.  The  latest 
source  of  inspiration  has  been  the  Russian  war.  Naval  and 
military  feats  of  arms  may  be  seen  represented  or  hinted  at 
in  every  style, — realistic,  picturesque,  comic,  allegorical. 

Being  thus  variously  useful  as  well  as  ornamental,  towels 
make  good  presents,  and  thousands  must.be  annually  given 
away    in    every    town.      Inns    often    have    towels    of   their    own, 


Trade.  485 

specially  inscribed  or  ornamented,  one  of  which  is  presented  to 
each  departing  guest  if  he  has  behaved  liberally  in  the  matter 
of  "tea-money  "  to  mine  host.  Shops  sometimes  do  likewise. 
At  New  Year  time,  in  particular,  there  is  quite  a  shower  of  such 
civilities.  When  destined  as  a  gift,  the  .towel  is  generally  folded 
in  a  piece  of  paper,  which  itself  bears  a  suitable  inscription, 
including  the  donor's  address,  with  the  occasional  addition  now- 
a-days  of  his  telephone  number  ;  for  even  in  such  minutiae,  the 
Japanese  of  the  lower  middle  class  are  up  to  date.  Sometimes, 
instead  of  the  host  giving  towels  to  his  guests,  the  process  is 
reversed.  This  happens  notably  in  the  case  of  pilgrim  bands 
or  clubs,  who  distribute  to  every  inn  at  which  they  alight  towels 
inscribed  with  the  club's  name,  and  perhaps  a  picture  of  the 
sacred  mountain  which  is  their  goal.  Towels  are  even  offered 
to  temples  by  the  pious,  appropriately  inscribed. 

Trade.  Rarely  has  the  fiat  of  a  prince — a  particular  edict 
issued  on  a  particular  day — succeeded  in  deflecting  the  whole 
current  of  a  nation's  enterprise  for  over  two  centuries.  This 
happened  in  Japan  when  the  country  was  closed  in  A.D.  1624, 
foreigners  being  expelled,  and  foreign  learning,  foreign  trade, 
and  foreign  travel  alike  prohibited.  Till  then  the  Japanese 
merchants  and  adventurers  had  been  a  power  in  Eastern  seas. 
Nor  was  the  commercial  instinct  theirs  alone.  The  leaders  of 
the  nation  had  been  nearly  as  keen.  It  is  a  mistake  to  suppose 
that  aversion  to  intercourse  with  foreigners  was  an  ingrained 
racial  characteristic,  or  even  an  official  tradition.  On  the 
contrary,  when  the  Portuguese  first  came  to  Japan  in  the 
sixteenth  century,  both  the  local  Daimyos  in  Kyushu  and  the 
central  rulers,— notably  Hideyoshi  the  Great, — hastened  to  wel- 
come the  new-comers  and  their  trade.  It  was  only  when 
suspicions  arose  of  nefarious  designs  upon  Japanese  national 
independence  that  a  policy  of  exclusion  was  adopted,  at  first 
reluctantly  and  fitfully,  then  with  systematic  completeness.  By 
the  edict  of  1624,  all  Japanese  were  forbidden  to  go  abroad,  and 


486  Trade. 

even  the  building  of  junks  above  a  certain  size  was  interdicted. 
From  that  instant,  the  movements  of  the  native  seafarers  were 
curbed  and  their  spirit  was  broken.  A  dribble  of  trade  with  the 
Dutch  at  Nagasaki,  on  the  furthest  confines  of  the  empire,  was 
all  that  remained.  Internal  trade  itself,  just  springing  into 
vigorous  life  after  centuries  of  civil  conflict,  was  hampered  by 
the  very  perfection  (along  certain  lines)  and  thoroughness  of  the 
feudal  system.  Not  only  did  the  central  government  at  Yedo 
behave  towards  commerce  as  a  stepmother ;  each  Daimyo  drew 
a  cordon  round  his  Daimiate.  Sumptuary  laws,  rules,  restrictions 
innumerable,  monopolies,  close  guilds,  an  embargo  on  new 
inventions,  the  predominance  of  aristocratic  militarism  and  of  the 
artistic  spirit, — all  these  things  together  formed  an  overwhelming 
obstacle  to  trade  on  a  large  scale.  The  Japanese  merchant, 
relegated  to  a  rank  below  that  of  the  peasant,  became  a  poor, 
timid  creature  with  unbusinesslike  methods,  paltry  aims,  and  a 
low  moral  standard. 

Of  course  such  an  outline  of  a  state  of  society,  drawn  with 
three  or  four  rapid  strokes,  must  not  be  accepted  as  a  finished 
picture.  Details  would  modify  the  impression.  The  Japan  of 
the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries  did  possess  some  few 
important  business  houses,  notably  that  of  Mitsui,  with  whom 
the  government  formed  a  sort  of  left-handed  alliance,  borrowing 
money  from  it  and  employing  it  in  sundry  ways,  much  as  our 
mediaeval  kings  were  wont  to  make  use  of  the  Jews  and  the  gold- 
smiths. The  memoirs  of  those  times  preserve  also  the  names 
of  a  few  individual  speculators, — for  instance,  Kinokuni-ya  Bun- 
zaemon,  who  made  a  fortune  in  oranges  and  squandered  it  in 
riotous  living.  Some  of  our  Western  business  expedients,  or  at 
least  adumbrations  of  them,  were  known,  such  as  clearing-houses, 
bills  of  lading,  and  bills  of  exchange.  The  two  commercial 
centres  were  Osaka  and  Yedo.  Here  was  conducted  the  sale  of 
the  government  rice ;  for  the  peasants  paid  their  taxes  in  kind, 
not  in  money,  then  a  scarce  commodity.  Around  these  official 
rice  transactions   all    other    business    revolved.       It    varied    little 


Trade.  487 

from  year  to  year,  scarcely  any  scope  being  afforded  for  private 
enterprise. 

When  the  country  was  thrown  open  some  forty  years  ago,  the 
few  large  commercial  houses  of  old  standing  were  looked  to  for 
the  purpose  of  establishing  relations  with  the  strangers  newly 
arrived.  They  declined  to  venture  on  what  appeared  a  hazardous 
experiment.  Such  a  new  departure  was  also  beyond  the  mental 
grasp  of  the  lesser  merchants,  who  worked  together  in  guilds, 
along  lines  settled  for  them  beforehand  by  time-honoured  pre- 
cedents. Thus  it  fell  out  that  Yokohama  and  the  other  foreign 
settlements  became  resorts  for  unscrupulous  and  irresponsible 
men, — a  calamity,  truly,  not  only  then  but  long  afterwards. 
The  Europeans  at  the  ports  naturally  judged  of  the  whole  nation 
by  the  only  specimens  with  whom  they  came  in  contact.  The 
Japanese  officials  on  the  other  hand,  and  to  some  extent  the  public 
at  large,  looked  askance  at  the  foreign  mercantile  community, 
because  of  its  connection  with  a  class  indisputably  contempti- 
ble. The  average  Japanese  trader  still  has  much  to  learn, 
especially  in  such  matters  as  the  punctual  fulfilment  of  a  contract 
and  the  meeting  of  an  obligation ;  but  he  has  become  a  keen 
man  of  business.  Moreover,  a  new  generation  of  merchants  and 
bankers  is  coming  to  the  fore, — men  of  good  standing  and 
liberal  education.  Though  still  comparatively  few  in  number, 
these  have  taken  up  their  calling  in  the  spirit  of  earnestness  and 
thoroughness  which  is  characteristic  of  the  modern  Japanese  in 
other  walks  of  life.  The  oversea  trade,  built  up  and  maintained 
by  foreigners  in  the  old  "treaty  port"  days,  tends  gradually  to 
pass  into  these  new  hands.  It  has  made  rapid  strides,  particularly 
since  1889,  during  which  period  of  fifteen  years  the  Japanese 
Government  has  taken  an  intelligently  active  interest  in  every- 
thing pertaining  to  the  commercial  and  industrial  welfare  of  the 
country. 

The  following  figures  may  help  to  show  Japan's  rapid  advance 
since  the  empire  was  thrown  open  to  foreign  trade  in  the  second 
half  of  the- nineteenth  century  : — 


488  Treaties  with  Foreign  Powers. 

Total  of  Imports  )  v  ,      , 

j   -c  •       o/co    r  Yen       26,246,^44. 

and  Exports  in   1868   j  '  *  °** 

Do.      in   T904  606,637,960. 

The  principal  imports  into  Japan  from  abroad  are  : — boilers, 
engines  and  machinery  of  all  kinds,  iron  ore,  pig  iron,  manu- 
factured iron  and  steel,  lead,  zinc,  tin,  kerosene  oil,  wheat,  rice, 
beans,  barley,  flour,  tinned  provisions,  alcohol,  chemicals,  dyes, 
paints,  glass,  paper,  sugar  both  raw  and  refined,  raw  and  manu- 
factured cotton,  raw  and  manufactured  wool,  flax,  hemp,  jute, 
China  grass,  tobacco,  Cardiff  coal,  malt,  manures  of  various 
descriptions,  wood  pulp,  timber,  and  explosives. 

The  chief  exports  are  : — tea,  rice,  dried  fish,  seaweed,  gelatine, 
chillies,  ginseng,  ginger,  pea-nuts,  vegetables,  sake,  soy,  beer, 
mineral  waters,  cotton  manufactures,  raw  and  manufactured  silk, 
camphor,  peppermint,  coal,  sulphur,  copper,  manganese,  zinc, 
bronze,  fish  oil,  vegetable  wax,  paper,  cigarettes,  matches, 
Portland  cement,  railway  sleepers,  timber,  bamboos,  brushes, 
straw  braid,  straw  matting,  wood  chips,  porcelain,  curios,  and 
works  of  art. 

Books  recommended.  The  British  Consular  Trade  Reports. — Annual  Return  of 
Foreign  Trade,  issued  by  the  Imperial  Japanese  Department  of  Finance. — Curious 
details  of  the  Portuguese,  Spanish,  Dutch,  and  English  trade  with  Japan  prior  to  the 
closing  of  the  country  in  1624  are  given,  passim,  in  Murdoch's  History  of  Japan 
during  the   Century  of  Early  Foreign  Intercourse  (iS42-jt6si). 


Treaties  with  Foreign  Powers.  The  subject  of  treaty 
revision  was  for  so  many  years  the  hinge  on  which  Japanese 
foreign  policy  turned,  the  working  of  the  new  treaties  is  still 
such  a  burning  question  to  the  foreign  residents,  that  the  new- 
comer desirous  of  peeping  below  the  surface  and  learning  some- 
thing of  the  inner  springs  of  local  politics,  will  perhaps  find  an 
interest  in  details  that  might  otherwise  be  condemned  as  "  ancient 
history."  In  effect,  is  not  the  recent  past  our  only  trustworthy 
guide  to  the  present  and  the  near  future  ? 

Japan's  first  treaty  with  the  United  States  was  that  wrung  from 
her,  in  1854,  by  the   terror    which    Commodore    Perry's    "black 


Treaties  with  Foreign  Powers.  489 

ships"  had  inspired.  Others,  dating  from  1858  to  1869  inclusive, 
followed  with  Russia,  Great  Britain,  France,  and  the  rest  of  the 
European  powers  great  and  small,  the  chief  features  in  these 
documents,  which  were  practically  merged  in  one  by  the  inser- 
tion of  the  most  favoured  nation  clause,  being  (I)  the  opening 
of  the  ports  of  Yokohama,  Kobe,  Osaka,  Nagasaki,  Niigata,  and 
Hakodate  to  foreign  trade  and  residence,  with  a  radius  of  10  ri 
(about  24 J  miles)  round  each,  termed  "Treaty  Limits,"  wherein 
foreigners  might  travel  without  passports ;  (II)  the  establishment 
of  "  exterritoriality,  that  is  to  say,  the  exemption  of  foreigners 
from  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Japanese  law-courts ;  (III)  a  very 
low  scale  of  import  dues,  mostly  five  per  cent  ad  valorem. 

Such,  in  barest  outline,  were  the  old  treaties,  their  tacitly 
assumed  basis  being  the  unequal  status  of  the  two  contracting 
parties, — civilised  white  men  on  the  one  hand,  Japan  but  just 
emerging  from  Asiatic  semi-barbarism  on  the  other.  How  to 
get  them  revised  on  more  favourable  terms,  long  formed  the 
great  crux  of  Japanese  diplomacy.  The  matter  was  a  complicated 
one,  involving,  as  it  did  on  the  foreigner's  part,  the  surrender  of 
commercial  and  legal  privileges  that  had  been  enjoyed  for  a  long 
term  of  years, — involving,  too,  the  extremely  delicate  question 
as  to  the  fitness  of  Japan  for  admission  into  the  family  of  Christian 
nations  on  equal  terms.  Legally,  Japan  had  a  claim  to  the 
revision  of  the  treaties  as  far  back  as  1872  ;  and  the  long  tarrying 
of  Prince  Iwakuras  embassy  in  the  United  States  in  1872-3  was 
avowedly  caused  by  the  desire  to  conclude  a  new  treaty  then 
and  there.  But  if  Sir  Francis  Adams's  account  of  the  proceed- 
ings may  be  trusted,  the  Japanese  authorities  themselves  ended 
by  requesting  a  delay.  Perhaps  there  had  been  gradually  borne 
in  upon  them  the  consciousness  that  Japan  was  then  in  no  posi- 
tion to  offer  suitable  guarantees ;  nor  indeed  did  her  laws  and 
usages  approximate  to  the  necessary  standard  for  a  whole  decade 
more.  A  less  radical,  but  equally  thorny,  obstacle  in  the  way 
was  the  fact  that  the  sixteen  or  seventeen  foreign  powers  had 
pledged  themselves  to  act    conjointly  in    their   negotiations,    and 


490  Treaties  with  Foreign  Powers. 

that  it  was  no  easy  matter  to  get  England,  France,  Holland,  and 
the  rest  to  consent  to  any  common  basis  on  which  a  conference 
might  be  opened.  Some  held  to  the  low  import  dues  which 
favoured  the  operations  of  their  merchants.  Others — all  perhaps 
- — hesitated  to  place  their  nationals  at  the  mercy  of  Japanese 
judges.  Thus  the  status  quo  was  preserved  for  years.  One  coun- 
try, the  United  States,  which  had  always  been  Japan's  kindest 
patron,  did,  no  doubt,  show  signs  of  breaking  away  from  the 
league  of  the  Western  powers,  and  made  a  separate  treaty  in 
1876,  whereby  all  the  chief  points  in  dispute  were  surrendered. 
This  treaty,  however,  contained  one  clause  which  invalidated  all 
the  rest, — a  clause  to  the  effect  that  the  treaty  was  not  to  go  into 
force  until  all  the  other  powers  should  have  concluded  treaties 
of  a  similar  purport.  America's  good-will  on  this  occasion, 
though  doubtless  genuine,  proved  therefore  to  be  of  the  Platonic 
order ;  and  "  the  Bingham  treaty,"  as  it  was  called  from  the 
name  of  the  minister  who  negotiated  it,  was  consigned  to  the 
limbo  of  a  pigeon-hole. 

True,  some  declare  that  the  paralysing  little  clause  in  this 
treaty  was  inserted,  not  by  the  American  negotiator,  but  by  the 
Japanese  Government  itself!  Impossible,  it  will  be  said.  Im- 
probable, assuredly.  Still,  when  the  reader  calls  to  mind  what 
has  been  mentioned  concerning  Prince  Iwakura's  alleged  ter- 
giversations, he  will  be  led  to  hesitate  before  rejecting  the 
possibility  of  such  a  thing.  It  will  be  seen  immediately  below 
that  on  two  occasions  more  recent  the  Japanese  negotiators  did 
actually  shift  their  basis  at  the  eleventh  hour ;  and  if  private 
individuals  often  tremble  to  see  their  heart's  desire  on  the  eve 
of  accomplishment,  and  would  give  worlds  to  recall  it  at  the 
last  moment,  why  should  not  the  same  be  sometimes  true  of 
governments  ? 

Meanwhile  Japan's  progress  in  Europeanisation  had  been  such, 
above  all  her  honest  eagerness  to  reform  her  laws  and  legal 
procedure  had  been  made  so  clearly  manifest,  that  it  began  to 
be  acknowledged  on  all  sides,  in    diplomatic    circles   and  in  the 


Treaties  with  Foreign  Powers.  491 

home  press,  that  the  time  had  arrived  for  the  admission  of  her 
claims,  in  return  for  granting  which  it  was  understood  that  she 
$hould  throw  open  the  whole  empire  to  foreign  trade  and  resi- 
dence, instead  of  restricting  these  to  the  "  Open  Ports "  of 
Yokohama,  Kobe,  etc.,  as  under  the  system  of  exterritoriality 
hitherto  in  vogue.  A  preliminary  conference  was  held  at  Tokyo 
in  1882,  to  settle  the  basis  of  negotiation.  The  Japanese  pro- 
posals included  the  abolition  of  exterritoriality  outside  the  for- 
eign settlements  as  soon  as  an  English  version  of  the  Civil  Code 
should  have  been  published,  the  abolition  of  exterritoriality  even 
in  the  foreign  settlements  after  a  further  period  of  three  years, 
the  appointment  of  no  less  than  twenty-five  foreign  judges  for 
a  term  of  fifteen  years, — the  said  judges  to  form  a  majority  in 
all  cases  affecting  foreigners,— and  the  use  of  English  as  the 
judicial  language  in  such  cases.  Diplomacy,  in  Japan  as  else- 
where, talks  much  and  moves  slowly.  To  elaborate  the  scheme 
here  outlined  was  the  arduous  work  of  four  years,  and  1886  was 
already  half-spent  when  the  great  conference,  intended  to  be  final, 
met  at  Tokyo.  The  English  and  German  representatives  led 
the  way  by  making  liberal  concessions  ;  and  all  was  progressing 
to  general  satisfaction,  when  suddenly,  in  July,  1887,  on  the 
return  from  abroad  of  certain  Japanese  politicians  holding  radical 
views,  the  Japanese  plenipotentiaries  shifted  the  basis  of  their 
demands,  and  the  negotiations  were  consequently  brought  to  a 
standstill. 

Nevertheless,  as  there  remained  a  genuine  desire  on  both  sides 
to  get  the  treaty  revision  question  settled,  the  attempt  to  settle 
it  was  not  given  up.  Some  of  the  powers  now  allowed  them- 
selves to  be  approached  singly.  Mexico  (absurd  as  it  may  sound) 
led  the  van.  To  be  sure,  she  had  no  trade  to  be  influenced,  and 
no  citizens  in  Japan  to  protect.  Anyhow,  she  made  her  treaty, 
which  was  ratified  early  in  1889.  In  the  summer  of  the  same 
year  several  of  the  powers  followed  suit, — first  the  United  States, 
next  Russia,  then  Germany.  France,  too,  was  on  the  point  of 
signing;    and    the    other    powers,    though    moving    less    quickly, 


492  Treaties  with  Foreign  Powers. 

were  also  moving  in  the  same  direction.  Suddenly  again, 
Japanese  public  opinion — if  that  term  may  be  employed,  for 
want  of  a  better,  to  denote  the  views  of  the  comparatively  small 
number  of  persons  who  in  the  Japan  of  those  days  thought 
and  spoke  on  political  subjects, — Japanese  public  opinion,  we 
say,  veered  round.  Among  the  new  stipulations  had  been  one 
to  the  effect  that  four  foreign  judges — not  twenty-five — were  to 
assist  the  native  bench  during  the  first  few  years  following 
on  treaty  revision.  This  stipulation  was  denounced  on  all 
hands  as  contrary  to  the  terms  of  the  new  Constitution,  which 
had  just  been  proclaimed.  But  the  real  objection  lay  else- 
where, and  had  its  root  in  panic  at  the  idea  of  Japan  being 
thrown  open  to  foreign  trade  and  residence.  For  years  the 
opening  of  the  country  had  been  prayed  for  as  a  blessing  to 
trade,  a  means  of  attracting  foreign  capital  to  the  mines  and 
industries,  a  means  of  making  Japanese  manners  and  institu- 
tions conform  to  what  were  almost  universally  admitted  to  be 
the  superior  manners  and  customs  of  the  West.  The  same 
anticipations  remained,  but  the  inferences  drawn  from  them 
were  reversed.  Japan,  it  was  now  feverishly  asserted,  would  be 
swamped  by  foreign  immigration,  her  national  customs  would 
be  destroyed,  her  mines,  her  industries  would  all  come  under 
foreign  control,  her  very  soil  would,  by  lease  or  purchase, 
pass  into  foreign  hands,  her  people  would  be  practically  enslav- 
ed, and  independent  Japan  would  exist  no  more.  Such  were 
the  sentiments  given  voice  to  in  every  private  conversation,  and 
re-echoed  daily  in  the  press.  Nevertheless  the  Japanese  Govern- 
ment, more  enlightened  than  the  Japanese  public,  endeavoured 
to  continue  the  negotiations  for  treaty  revision.  Popular  excite- 
ment then  began  to  seek  more  violent  vents.  The  Minister 
for  Foreign  Affairs,  Count  Okuma,  had  his  leg  blown  ofT 
by  a  dynamite  bomb.  It  became  evident  in  October,  1889, 
that  negotiations  could  no  longer  be  carried  on  consistently  with 
the  public  peace,  and  the  Government  once  more  drew  back. 
Even    those    treaties    which    had    already    been    concluded    with 


Treaties  with  Foreign  Powers.  493 

America,  Germany,  and  Russia  were  left  unratified  ;  and  it  Mas 
proved  that  the  representatives  of  the  other  great  powers  had 
acted  wisely  in  acting  slowly,  and  had  saved  their  respective 
governments  from  a  humiliating  rebuff. 

A  few  months  slipped  by,  and  the  tide  once  more  began  to 
flow.  The  native  press — whether  inspired  from  headquarters  we 
cannot  say — started  a  new  watchword,  which,  being  interpreted, 
signified  "  treaty  revision  on  a  footing  of  equality. '**  This  was 
a  fair  phrase ;  but  on  examination,  it  turned  out  to  mean  simply 
that  the  foreign  powers  should  concede  everything,  and  Japan 
nothing  at  all.  In  fact,  it  was  a  case  of 
"  the  fault  of  the  Dutch, 
"  That  of  giving  too  little,  and  taking  too  much." 
The  claim  was  preposterous ;  but — for  the  impossible  does  some- 
times come  to  pass — it  actually  was  granted!  Who  knows? 
Perhaps  Great  Britain  thought  thereby  to  obtain  the  Japanese 
alliance ;  perhaps  it  was  only  that  she  wanted  to  patch  up, 
somehow  and  once  for  all,  an  old  difference  which  had  degen- 
erated into  a  bore.  Anyhow,  in  1894,  the  Radical  English 
ministry  of  the  hour  consented  to  a  new  treaty  on  the  peculiar 
Dutch  lines  just  mentioned.  Hereby,  either  explicitly  or  else 
implicitly  by  the  recognition  of  her  legal  codes  (some  of 
which  had  not  even  been  published  at  that  date !),  Japan, 
obtained  the  abolition  of  exterritoriality,  full  jurisdiction  over 
British  subjects,  the  right  to  fix  her  own  import  dues,  the 
monopoly  of  the  coasting  trade,  and  the  exclusion  of  British 
subjects  from  the  purchase  of  land,  or  even  from  the  leasing 
of    land    for    agricultural    or    mining    purposes.       In   exchange, 

Great  Britain  obtained  ?      The  only  items  revealed  by  a 

microscopic  scrutiny  were  that  every  one  would  be  permitted  to 
travel  unmolested  in  the  interior, — but  in  practice  this  privilege 
was  enjoyed  already,  as  would  naturally  be  the  case  in  any 
country  ranking  as  civilised, — and  that  property  might  be  leased 
in  the  interior  for  residential  and  commercial  purposes,  a  doubtful 

*  Taito  Jayaku  kaisci. 


494  Treaties  with  Foreign  Powers. 

advantage,  entailing,  as  it  would,  on  merchants  the  expense  of 
keeping  up  establishments  in  various  cities  for  the  same  trade 
which  had  hitherto  more  economically  centred  in  the  Open  Ports. 
But  all  this  was  merely  the  beginning  of  the  trouble.  As 
the  date  for  the  enforcement  of  the  treaty  drew  near,  and  men 
had  to  make  arrangements  accordingly,  they  found  themselves 
confronted  with  obstacles  which  could  never  have  arisen  had  the 
negotiators  exercised  ordinary  foresight.  The  ambiguity  of  the 
document  was  not  the  least  of  its  defects.  A  careful  consideration 
of  what  was  not  stipulated  for,  as  well  as  of  what  was,  showed 
that,  under  the  new  treaty,  British  subjects  might,  if  the  Japanese 
Government  so  ordained,  lose  their  privilege  of  publishing  news- 
papers and  holding  public  meetings,  in  a  word,  their  birthright 
of  free  speech,  and  that  it  was  doubtful  whether  their  doctors 
and  lawyers  would  be  allowed  to  practise  without  a  Japanese 
diploma.  Even  the  period  for  which  leases  could  be  held  was 
left  uncertain  ;  the  conditions  of  the  sale  and  re-purchase  of  leases 
in  what  had  hitherto  been  the  foreign  "Concessions"  were  left 
uncertain ;  the  right  to  employ  labour  and  to  start  industries 
was  left  uncertain ;  the  right  of  foreign  insurance  agencies  to 
continue  to  do  business  was  left  uncertain.  As  for  the  question 
of  taxation, — a  matter  of  prime  importance  if  ever  there  was 
one, — which  almost  immediately  ramified  into  a  labyrinth,  the 
negotiators  had  simply  not  troubled  their  heads  about  it.  With 
things  in  this  state,  and  with  new  duties  of  from  thirty  to 
forty  per  cent  levied  precisely  on  those  articles  which  are 
prime  necessities  to  us  but  not  to  the  Japanese,  could  any 
one  imagine  such  terms  having  ever  been  agreed  to  except  as 
the  result  of  a  disastrous  war?  The  authorities  in  Downing 
Street  apparently  considered  that  a  state  of  things  endurable 
by  British  communities  in  certain  other  countries,  should  be 
good  enough  for  the  British  community  in  Japan.  But  surely 
there  is  all  the  difference  in  the  world  between  acquiescing  in 
inconveniences  of  immemorial  date,  and  running  one's  neck  into 
a  new  noose. 


Treaties  with  Foreign  Powers.  495 

The  British  treaty  once  concluded,  other  powers  followed  suit. 
To  some  of  them  the  nature  of  the  terms  mattered  little ;  for 
the  preponderance  of  British  commercial  and  residential  interests 
has  always  been  so  great  in  Japan  as  almost  to  make  it  a  case 
of  "Eclipse  first,  and  the  rest  nowhere."  The  United  States — 
the  only  powej:  which  might  have  been  expected  to  stand  out 
for  better  terms — was  precluded  from  so  doing,  partly  by  her 
traditional  policy  of  exceptional  condescension  towards  Japan, 
partly,  as  it  would  seem,  by  the  fact  of  her  government,  like 
that  of  Great  Britain,  having  failed  to  appreciate  in  all  its 
practical  details,  the  position  which  affairs  would  assume  when 
the  old  order  should  have  been  abrogated  and  the  new  set  up 
in  its  stead.  Meanwhile  the  China  war  of  1894-5  took  place, 
Japan's  marvellous  successes  in  which  made  resistance  to  any  of 
her  demands  increasingly  difficult.  The  German  and  French 
negotiators,  however,  kept  their  heads ;  and  under  the  most 
favoured  nation  clause,  resident  Britishers  and  Americans — by  a 
stroke  of  good  luck,  nowise  thanks  to  the  good  management  of 
their  rulers — have  come  to  share  in  certain  ameliorations  stipulated 
for  by  other  powers  : — their  doctors,  for  instance,  may  practise, 
and  their  newspapers  may  continue  to  exist,  though  subject 
now  to  the  Japanese  censure,  no  longer  independent  as  of  old. 

Such  is  the  story  of  Japanese  treaty  revision,  so  far  as  it  is 
publicly  known.  But  we  have  access  to  no  private  sources  of 
information,  and  we  are  (but  for  that  we  thank  God)  no  politician. 
Diplomacy  is  not  a  game  of  chance.  It  is  a  game  of  skill,  like 
chess,  at  which  the  better  player  always  wins.  The  Japanese 
negotiators,  who,  to  be  sure,  had  more  at  stake  than  their 
opponents,  entirely  overmatched  them  in  brains.  By  playing 
a  waiting  game,  by  letting  loose  Japanese  public  opinion  when 
convenient,  and  then  representing  it  as  a  much  more  potent  factor 
than  it  actually  is,  by  skilful  management  of  the  press,  by  adroitly 
causing  the  chief  seat  of  the  negotiations  to  be  shifted  from 
Tokyo,  where  some  of  the  local  diplomats  possessed  an  adequate 
knowledge   of  the    subject,    to    the    European    chanceries    which 


496  Treaties  with  Foreign  Powers. 


possessed  little  or  none,  by  talent,  perseverance,  patience,  tact, 
exercised  year  after  year, — in  a  word,  by  first-rate  diplomacy, 
they  gained  a  complete  victory  over  their  adversaries,  and  at 
last  avenged  on  the  West  the  violence  which  it  had  committed 
in  breaking  open  Japan  a  generation  before. 

From  the  point  of  view  of  patriotic  Englishmen,  the  residents 
in  Japan  (that  is,  the  class  which  possesses  the  best  knowledge 
of  the  state  of  the  case)  almost  unanimously  regard  the  British 
Foreign  Office  with  contempt,  for  having  allowed  itself  to  be  so 
grossly  misled  and  roundly  beaten.  But  what  avails  that?  It 
is  a  hundred  years  since  Nelson  noted  the  humiliating  fact  that 
"  England  seldom  gains  anything  by  negotiation,  except  the  being 
laughed  at,"  and  still  the  Foreign  Office  slumbers  and  blunders 
on  as  in  Nelson's  day.  Diplomacy  is  not  our  talent.  We  must 
continue  to  endure  British  ineptitude  in  counsel,  as  we  endure 
war,  pestilence,  and  American  journalism. 

Sacrificed,  as  they  have  been,  on  the  altar  of  la  haute  politique, 
the  only  sensible  course  for  the  foreign  residents  to  pursue  is  to 
make  the  best  of  a  bad  bargain,  and  that  is  what  they  have  set 
themselves  to  do  by  arranging  for  the  execution  of  trustworthy 
English  versions  of  the  codes,  such  as  may  acquaint  them  with 
the  details  of  their  new  position  under  Japanese  laws,  and  by 
other  endeavours  to  ensure  the  harmonious  working  of  the  new 
machinery.  Down  to  1899,  their  settlements  in  Japan  had 
formed — as  Shanghai  still  does  to-day — a  sort  of  little  republic, 
without  political  rights,  it  is  true,  but  also  without  duties.  They 
paid  few  taxes,  carried  on  their  business  free  of  police  inquisition, 
printed  what  they  liked  in  their  newspapers,  and,  generally, 
did  what  was  right  in  their  own  eyes.  Now  all  that  has  been 
changed,  and  they  must  learn  to  jog  along  under  less  favourable 
conditions.  Such  miscarriages  of  justice  as  the  "  Kent  case," 
the  "  Kobe  Water-works  case,"  and  the  "  Clifford  Wilkinson 
case"*  have  not  been  calculated  to  reassure    their    minds    as    to 

*  We  cannot  here  touch  the  very  grave  issues  of  the  "Kent  case"  and  the  "Water- 
works case."     But  the  "Clifford  Wilkinson  case"  was  so  grotesquely  amusing  that  not 


Vegetable  Wax.  497 

the  superiority  of  Japanese  to  English  law ;  but  they  hope  for 
the  best.  The  heavy  and  complicated  system  of  taxation, — 
especially  the  business  tax,  with  its  wheels  within  wheels — weighs 
their  business  down ;  but  there  again  they  hope  for  the  best. 
Meantime  lawyers,  officials,  and  arbitrators  can  go  on  arguing 
and  penning  despatches  to  their  hearts'  content.  The  house- 
tax  question  alone  has  produced  cumbrous  volumes  in  several 
languages  ;  but  the  day  of  settlement  is  not  yet. 

The  conclusion  would  seem  to  be  that  neither  the  advocate 
of  European  official  methods,  nor  those  (and  the  present  writer 
avows  himself  one  of  them)  who  love  Japan  but  dislike  jingoism, 
can  find  any  source  of  edification  in  this  page  of  modern  his.tory, 
on  which  so  much  pettiness  and  shiftiness  are  inscribed. 

Book  Recommended.      Treaties  and   Conventions  between    the    Empire  of  Japan 
and  Other  Powers,  compiled  by  the  Japanese  Foreign  Office. 

Tycoon.  The  literal  meaning  of  this  title  is  "  great  prince  " 
(y\jlti)'  ^  was  adopted  by  some  of  the  Shoguns  in  their 
intercourse  with  foreign  states, — Korea  first  in  the  seventeenth 
century,  then  the  Western  powers  at  the  time  of  the  opening  of 
Japan.  Their  object  apparently  was  to  magnify  their  position,  and 
they  succeeded  ;  for  the  European  diplomats  assumed  that  the 
Shogun  was  a  sort  of  Emperor,  and  dubbed  him  "His  Majesty" 
accordingly. 

Vegetable  Wax.  The  vegetable  wax-tree  is  closely  allied 
to  the  lacquer- tree,  both  being  sumachs  of  the  genus  Rhus.     The 

to  devote  a  word  to  it  would  be  to  defraud  our  readers  of  a  good  laugh.  Mr.  Wilkinson 
is  the  proprietor  of  the  favourite  Tansan  mineral  spring  near  Kobe,  which  he  bottles 
for  table  use.  A  Japanese  firm  had  imitated  his  label.  He  obtained  a  judgment  against 
this  firm,  who  thereupon  appealed,  and  went  on  imitating  the  label.  He  then  applied 
for  an  injunction  to  inhibit  them  from  doing  so,  pending  the  result  of  the  appeal.  But 
the  judge  decided  that  the  Japanese  firm  might  continue  to  imitate  the  label  in  question, 
His  Lordship  opining  that,  as  it  was  winter  time,  probably  very  few  bottles  of  Tansan 
water  would  be  drunk,  and  Mr.  Wilkinson's  loss  could  therefore  be  but  slight.  (!!) 
By  the  way,  we  should  apologise  to  Mr.  Wilkinson  for  speaking  of  the  case  as  amus- 
ing. It  was  amusing  to  the  public,  but  doubtless  appeared  in  quite  a  different  light  to 
him,  as  the  butt  of  this  Japanese  juridical  joke. 


498  Weights  and  Measures. 

berries  of  the  wax-tree  are  crushed  in  a  press ;  and  the  exuding 
matter,  which  is  intermediate  in  appearance  between  wax  and 
tallow,  is  warmed,  purified,  and  made  into  candles.  It  is  known 
in  commerce  as  "Japan  wax,"  and  the  tree  producing  it  must 
not  be  confounded  with  the  famous  tallow-tree  of  China  {Slillingia 
sebicifera  Euphorbiacece).  The  berries  of  the  lacquer-tree  are 
sometimes  utilised  in  the  same  way  as  those  of  the  vegetable 
wax-tree. 

Book  recommended.      The  Preparation  of  Vegetable   Wax,  by  Henry   Gribble,    in 
Vol.  III.  Part  I.  of  the  "  Asiatic  Transactions." 

Volcanoes.     See  Earthquakes  and  Geography. 

Weights  and  Measures.  With  a  few  notable  exceptions, 
the  Japanese  weights  and  measures  are  decimal.  The  most 
useful  are  : — 

Distance.  1  bu        -5- line  1.4317  line. 

10  bu      =  1  sun      "3  inch  *="      1. 1931  inch. 

10  sun    —  1   shake  §<  foot  «     11.9305  inches. 

6  shaku—  1  ken      2  double  yard  §•      1.9884  yard. 

10  shaku  =  1  jo        I  10  feet  t       3. 3 140  yards. 

60  ken    =  1   cho      £.  120  yards     w  1 19.3040      ,, 

36  cho    =  1  ri        i  2|  miles  2.4403  miles. 

It  may  be  of  practical  service  to  remember  that  15  cho  make 
almost  exactly  1  English  mile.  The  English  mile  and  chain 
{80  chains=i  mile)  are  the  measure  employed  on  all  railways 
throughout  the  empire,  and  the  sea  mile  (English  Admiralty 
"knot")  obtains  for  maritime  distances.  Otherwise  the  ri  and 
cho  are  universally  employed.  The  hiro,  or  "fathom,"  of  about 
6  feet,  is  identical  with  the  ken,  except  that  it  is  used  more  loosely 
for  measuring  such  things  as  rope  and  depths  at  sea. 

Cloth  Measure.       1   sun       g    inch    tf     1.49 13  inch. 
10  sun  =  1  shaku    *  foot    w    14.9130  inches. 

1  tan  (piece)  varies  from  25  to  30  shaku. 
1  hiki  (double  piece)   =   2  tan. 


Weights  and  Measures.  499 

Notice  how  much  longer  the  inch  and  foot  of  Cloth  Measure 
are  than  the  measures  of  Distance  similarly  named.  In  order  to 
distinguish  the  two  kinds  of  foot,  the  Cloth  Measure  foot  is 
often  called  hijira-jaku,  the  Distance  foot  kane-jaku.  In  cheap 
material  the  tan  is  apt  to  be  short,  in  expensive  stuffs  long. 
Superficies. 

36  square  shaku=.  1  bu    =  3.9538    square    yards. 

30  bu  =  1  se    =119  (about)  ,,         „ 

10  se  —  1  tan  =  0.2451  acre. 

10  tan  =  1   chb  —  2.4507  acres. 

This  is  how  agricultural  land  is  measured.  Town  lots  and 
buildings  go  by  tsubo  only,  whatever  their  size: — 1  tsubo=i  bu. 
An  English  acre  is  nearly  equivalent  to  1,210  tsubo,  or  4  tan 
and  10  bu.  It  may  be  useful  to  remember  that  the  tsubo  (bu) 
is  exactly  the  size  of  two  Japanese  mats  laid  side  by  side.  The 
area  of  rooms  is  computed  in  mats  (jo),  which  are  always  6 
shaku  long  by  3  shaku  broad. 


Capacity. 

10 

shaku =  1 

g<' 

i  pint 

.3176  pint. 

10 

go 

=  1 

shb 

.'c 

ij-  quart 

-7 

1.5881  quart. 

10 

slid 

=  1 

to 

H 

j  4  gallons,  or 
j  J  bushel 

W 

j  3-9703  gallons. 
|    .4962  bushel. 

4 

to 

=  1 

hyb 

c 

2  bushels 

r. 

1.9852  bushel 

10 

to 

=  1 

koku 

< 

j  40  gallons, 
}  or  5  bushels 

J  39-7033  gallons. 
1    4.9629  bushels. 

It  was  in  koku— shall  we  translate  it  "bales?" — of  rice  that  the 
incomes  of  Daimyos  and  their  retainers  were  formerly  computed, 
while  the  rations  of  the  lower  grade  of  Samurai  were  computed 
in  hyb  or  "bags."  The  hyb  of  charcoal  is  of  indeterminate  size, 
as  is  also  the  zva,  or  "  bundle,"  of  fire-wood. 
Weight. 

10     mo     =  1     rin         =    .5797  grain  avoirdupois 
10     rin     =  1    fun        =  5.7972  grains         ,, 
10   fun    =  1    momme    —2.12  drachms 
i6o7?iom7?ie=  1  kin  (pound)  — 1.3227  lb.  „ 

\,ooomo)7wie—  1  kwan  or  Awa??wie=$.28i7  lbs.  „ 


500  Woman  (Status  of). 

It  will  be  gathered  from  this  table  that  the  standard  Japanese 
pound  weight  of  160  momme  is  approximately  equivalent  to  i\ 
lb.  avoirdupois.  Some  commodities,  however — such  foreign  food- 
stuffs as  bread  and  meat — have  a  somewhat  smaller  pound  of 
1 20  momme,  which  is  almost  exactly  the  English  pound,  while 
tobacco  is  retailed  in  still  smaller  pounds  of  but  100  momme 
(hyaku  me). 

Woman  (Status  of).  Japanese  women  are  most  womanly, 
— kind,  gentle,  faithful,  pretty.  But  the  way  in  which  they  are 
treated  by  the  men  has  hitherto  been  such  as  might  cause  a 
pang  to  any  generous  European  heart.  No  wonder  that  some 
of  them  are  at  last  endeavouring  to  emancipate  themselves.  A 
woman's  lot  is  summed  up  in  what  are  termed  "  the  three  obedi- 
ences,"— obedience,  while  yet  unmarried,  to  a  father;  obedience, 
when  married,  to  a  husband  and  that  husband's  parents ; 
obedience,  when  widowed,  to  a  son.  At  the  present  moment,  the 
greatest  lady  in  the  land  may  have  to  be  her  husband's  drudge, 
to  fetch  and  carry  for  him,  to  bow  down  humbly  in  the  hall 
when  my  lord  sallies  forth  on  his  walks  abroad,  to  wait  upon  him 
at  meals,  to  be  divorced  almost  at  his  good  pleasure.  "  Society," 
in  our  sense  of  the  word,  scarcely  exists.  Men  do  not  call  on 
ladies,  can  hardly  even  ask  after  them.  Two  grotesquely  different 
influences  are  now  at  work  to  undermine  this  state  of  slavery — 
one,  European  theories  concerning  the  relation  of  the  sexes,  the 
other,  European  clothes !  The  same  fellow  who  struts  into  a 
room  before  his  wife  when  she  is  dressed  a  la  japonaise,  will  let 
her  go  in  first  when  she  is  dressed  a  I '  europeenne.  Probably 
such  acts  of  courtesy  do  not  extend  to  the  home,  where  there  is 
no  one  by  to  see ;  for  most  Japanese  men,  even  in  this  very 
year  of  grace  1904,  make  no  secret  of  their  disdain  for  the 
female  sex.  Still  it  is  a  first  step  that  even  on  some  occasions, 
consideration  for  women  should  at  least  be  simulated. 

Have  we  explained  ourselves  ?  We  would  not  have  it  thought 
that  Japanese  women  are  actually    ill-used.     There   is   probably 


Woman  (Status  of).  501 

very  little  wife-beating  in  Japan,  neither  is  there  any  zenana 
system,  any  veiling  of  the  face.  Rather  is  it  that  women  are 
all  their  lives  treated  more  or  less  like  babies,  neither  trusted 
with  the  independence  which  our  modern  manners  allow,  nor 
commanding  the  romantic  homage  which  was  woman's  dower  in 
mediaeval  Europe;  for  Japanese  feudalism  — despite  its  general 
similarity  to  the  feudalism  of  the  West — knew  nothing  of  gallantry. 
A  Japanese  knight  performed  his  valiant  deeds  for  no  such 
fanciful  reward  as  a  lady's  smile.*  He  performed  them  out  of 
loyalty  to  his  lord  or  filial  piety  towards  the  memory  of  his 
papa,  taking  up,  maybe,  the  clan  vendetta  and  perpetuating  it. 
Our  own  sympathies,  as  will  be  sufficiently  evident  from  the 
whole  tenour  of  our  remarks,  are  with  those  who  wish  to  raise 
Japanese  women  to  the  position  occupied  by  their  sisters  in 
Western  lands.  But  many  resident  foreigners — male  foreigners, 
of  course — think  differently,  and  the  question  forms  a  favourite 
subject  of  debate.  The  only  point  on  which  both  parties  agree 
is  in  their  praise  of  Japanese  woman.  Says  one  side,  "She  is 
so  charming  that  she  deserves  better  treatment," — to  which  the 
other  side  retorts  that  it  is  just  because  she  is  "kept  in  her  place" 
that  she  is  charming.  The  following  quotation  is  from  a  letter 
to  the  present  writer  by  a  well-known  author,  who,  like  others, 
has  fallen  under  the  spell.  "How  sweet,"  says  he,  "Japanese 
woman  is  !  All  the  possibilities  of  the  race  for  goodness  seem 
to  be  concentrated  in  her.  It  shakes  one's  faith  in  some 
Occidental  doctrines.  If  this  be  the  result  of  suppression  and 
oppression,  then  these  are  not  altogether  bad.  On  the  other  hand, 
how  diamond-hard  the  character  of  the  American  woman  becomes 
under  the  idolatry  of  which  she  is  the  object.  In  the  eternal 
order  of  things,  which  is  the  higher  being, — the  childish,  confid- 
ing, sweet  Japanese  girl,  or  the  superb,  calculating,  penetrating, 
Occidental  Circe  of  our  more  artificial  society,  with  her  enormous 
power    for    evil    and    her    limited    capacity    for    good  ? " — That 

*  Compare  the  Article  on  Samurai. 


502  Woman  (Status  of). 

Japanese  women  are  charming,  either  because  or  in  spite  of  the 
disadvantages  of  their  position,  is  a  fact  which  the  admiration  of 
foreign  lady  travellers  proves  more  conclusively  than  aught  else  ; 
for  in  their  case  such  admiration  cannot  be  suspected  of  any 
arriere-pensee.  How  many  times  have  we  not  heard  European 
ladies  go  into  ecstasies  over  them,  and  marvel  how  they  could 
be  of  the  same  race  as  the  men  !  And  closer  acquaintance  does 
but  confirm  such  views.  Moreover,  it  reveals  the  existence  of 
solid — we  had  almost  said  stern — qualities  unsuspected  by  the 
casual  observer.  These  delicate-looking  women  have  Spartan 
hearts.  Countless  anecdotes  attest  their  courage,  physical  as  well 
as  moral. 

The  following  treatise  by  the  celebrated  moralist  Kaibara  so 
faithfully  sums  up  the  ideas  hitherto  prevalent  in  Japan  concern- 
ing the  relations  between  the  sexes,  that  we  shall  give  it  in  full, 
notwithstanding  its  length.  The  title,  which  is  literally  "The 
Greater  Learning  for  Women'7  (Onna  Daigaku),  might  be  more 
freely  rendered  by  "The  Whole  Duty  of  Woman.'"* 

The  Greater  Learning  eor  Women. 

"  Seeing  that  it  is  a  girl's  destiny,  on  reaching  womanhood,  to  go  to  a 
new  home,  and  live  in  submission  to  her  father-in-law  and  mother-in-law, 
it  is  even  more  incumbent  upon  her  than  it  is  on  a  boy  to  receive  with  all 
reverence  her  parents'  instructions.  Should  her  parents,  through  excess  of 
tenderness,  allow  her  to  grow  up  self-willed,  she  will  infallibly  show  herself 
capricious  in  her  husband's  house,  and  thus  alienate  his  affection,  while,  if 
her  father-in-law  be  a  man  of  correct  principles,  the  girl  will  find  the 
yoke  of  these  principles  intolerable.  She  will  hate  and  decry  her  father-in- 
law,  and  the  end  of  these  domestic  dissensions  will  be  her  dismissal  from 
her  husband's  house,  and  the  covering  of  herself  with  ignominy.  Her 
parents,  forgetting  the  faulty  education  they  gave   her,   may   indeed   lay   all 

*  This  translation  is  reprinted  from  a  paper  by  the  present  writer  entitled  Educa- 
tional Literature  for  Japanese  Women,  contributed  in  July,  1878,  to  Vol.  X.  Part  III. 
of  the  "Journal  of  the  Royal  Asiatic  Society  of  Great  Britain."  An  imitation  of  the 
original  work,  intended  at  the  same  time  to  serve  as  its  refutation  by  preaching  modern 
ideas  to  the  Japanese  "new  woman,"  appeared  in  1809  from  the  pen  of  the  celebrated 
educationalist,  Fukuzawa,  but  was  not  calculated  to  add  to  his  reputation. 


Woman  (Status  of).  503 

the  bflame  on  the  father-in-law.  But  they  will  be  in  error ;  for  the  whole 
disaster  should  rightly  he  attributed  to  the  faulty  education  the  girl  received 
from    her  parents. 

-/.More  precious  in  a  woman  is  a  virtuous  heart  than  a  face  of  beauty. 
Thie  vicious  woman's  heart  is  ever  excited  ;  she  glares  wildly  around  her, 
she  vents  her  anger  on  others,  her  words  are  harsh  and  her  accent  vulgar. 
N'v'hen  she  speaks,  it  is  to  set  herself  above  others,  to  upbraid  others,  to 
•invy  others,  to  be  puffed  up  with  individual  pride,  to  jeer  at  others,  to 
outdo  others,— all  things  at  variance  with  the  '  way '  in  which  a  woman 
should  walk.  The  only  qualities  that  befit  a  woman  are  gentle  obedience, 
chastity,   mercy,  and  quietness. 

"  From  her  earliest  youth,  a  girl  should  observe  the  line  of  demarcation 
separating  women  from  men  ;  and  never,  even  for  an  instant,  should  she 
be  allowed  to  see  or  hear  the  slightest  impropriety.  The  customs  of  antiquity 
did  not  allow  men  and  women  to  sit  in  the  same  apartment,  to  keep  their 
wearing-apparel  in  the  same  place,  to  bathe  in  the  same  place  or  to 
transmit  to  each  other  anything  directly  from  hand  to  hand.  A  woman 
going  abroad  at  night  must  in  all  cases  carry  a  lighted  lantern ;  and  (not 
to  speak  of  strangers)  she  must  observe  a  certain  distance  in  her  intercourse 
even  with  her  husband  and  with  her  brothers.  In  our  days,  the  woman 
of  the  lower  classes,  ignoring  all  rules  of  this  nature,  behave  themselves 
disorderly;  they  contaminate  their  reputations,  bring  down  reproach  upon  the 
heads  of  their  parents  and  brothers,  and  spend  their  whole  lives  in  an 
unprofitable  manner.  Is  not  this  truly  lamentable  ?  It  is  written  likewise,  in 
the  '  Lesser  Learning,'  that  a  woman  must  form  no  friendship  and  no 
intimacy,  except  when  ordered  to  do  so  by  her  parents  or  by  the  '  middle- 
man.'* Even  at  the  peril  of  her  life,  must  she  harden  her  heart  like  rock 
or   metal,   and  observe  the  rules  of  propriety. 

"  In  China,  marriage  is  called  returning,  for  the  reason  that  a  woman 
must  consider  her  husband's  home  as  her  own,  and  that,  when  she  marries, 
she  is  therefore  returning  to  her  own  home.  However  humble  and 
needy  may  be  her  husband's  position,  she  must  find  no  fault  with  him,  but 
consider  the  poverty  of  the  household  which  it  has  pleased  Heaven  to  give 
her  as  the  ordering  of  an  unpropitious  fate.  The  sage  of  oldf  taught  that, 
once  married,  she  must  never  leave  her  husband's  house.  Should  she 
forsake  the  '  way,'  and  be  divorced,  shame  shall  cover  her  till  her  latest 
hour.  With  regard  to  this  point,  there  are  seven  faults,  which  are  termed 
'the  Seven  Reasons  for  Divorce:'  (i)  A  woman  shall  be  divorced  for 
disobedience  to  her  father-in-law  or  mother-in-law.     (ii)   A   woman  shall  be 

*  See  page  310. 
t  Confucius. 


504  Woman  (Status  of). 

divorced  if  she  fail  to  bear  children,  the  reason  for  this  rule  beingjLthat 
women  are  sought  in  marriage  for  the  purpose  of  giving  men  posterity.  A 
barren  woman  should,  however,  be  retained  if  her  heart  is  virtuous  and  her 
conduct  correct  and  free  from  jealousy,  in  which  case  a  child  of  the  same 
blood  must  be  adopted;  neither  is  there  any  just  cause  for  a  man  \  to 
divorce  a  barren  wife,  if  he  have  children  by  a  concubine,  (iii)  Lewdness 
is  a  reason  for  divorce,  (iv)  Jealousy  is  a  reason  for  divorce,  (v)  Leprosy 
or  any  like  foul  disease,  is  a  reason  for  divorce,  (vi)  A  woman  shall  be 
divorced,  who,  by  talking  overmuch  and  prattling  disrespectfully,  disturbs 
the  harmony  of  kinsmen  and  brings  trouble  on  her  household,  (vii)  A 
woman  shall  be  divorced  who  is  addicted  to  stealing.— All  the  '  Seven 
Reasons  for  Divorce '  were  taught  by  the  Sage.  A  woman,  once  married 
and  then  divorced,  has  wandered  from  the  'way/  and  is  covered  with  the 
greatest  shame,  even  if  she  should  enter  into  a  second  union  with  a  man 
of  wealth  and  position. 

"  It  is  the  chief  duty  of  a  girl  living  in  the  parental  house  to  practise 
filial  piety  towards  her  father  and  mother.  But  after  marriage,  her  chief 
duty  is  to  honour  her  father-in-law  and  mother-in-law— to  honour  them 
beyond  her  own  father  and  mother — to  love  and  reverence  them  with  all 
ardour,  and  to  tend  them  with  every  practice  of  filial  piety.  While  thou 
honourest  thine  own  parents,  think  not  lightly  of  thy  father-in-law !  Never 
should  a  woman  fail,  night  and  morning,  to  pay  her  respects  to  her  father- 
in-law  and  mother-in-law.  Never  should  she  be  remiss  in  performing  any 
tasks  they  may  require  of  her.  With  all  reverence  must  she  carry  out,  and 
never  rebel  against,  her  father-in-law's  commands.  On  every  point  must 
she  enquire  of  her  father-in-law  and  mother-in-law,  and  abandon  herself  to 
their  direction.  Even  if  thy  father-in-law  and  mother-in-law  be  pleased  to 
hate  and  vilify  thee,  be  not  angry  with  them,  and  murmur  not !  If  thou 
carry  piety  towards  them  to  its  utmost  limits,  and  minister  to  them  in 
ail  sincerity,  it  cannot  be  but  that  they  will  end  by  becoming  friendly  to 
thee.  , 

"A_woman  has  no  particular  lord.  She  must  look  to  her  husband  as  her 
lord,  and  must  serve  him  with  all  worship  and  reverence,  not  despising  or 
thinking  lightly  of  him.  The  great  life-long  duty  of  a  woman  is  obedieviJV\c. 
In  her  dealings  with  her  husband,  both  the  expression  of  her  countenance 
and  the  style  of  her  address  should  be  courteous,  humble,  and  conciliatory,, 
never  peevish  and  intractable,  never  rude  and  arrogant : —that  should  V  ) 
a  woman's  first  and  chiefest  care.  When  the  husband  issues  his  instructions, 
the  wife  must  never  disobey  them.  In  doubtful  cases,  she  should  enquire 
of  her  husband,  and  obediently  follow  his  commands.  If  ever  her  husband 
should  enquire   of   her,    she    should    answer   to   the   point; — to  answer  in  a 


Woman  (Status  of)  505 

careless  fashion  were  a  mark  of  rudeness.  Should  her  husband  be  roused 
at  any  time  to  anger,  she  must  obey  him  with  fear  and  trembling,  and 
not  set  herself  up  against  him  in  anger  and  frowardness.  A  woman  should 
look  on  her  husband  as  if  he  were  Heaven  itself,  and  never  weary  of 
thinking  how  she  may  yield  to  her  husband,  and  thus  escape  celestial 
castigation. 

"As  brothers-in-law  and  sisters-in-law  are  the  brothers  and  sisters  of  a 
woman's  husband,  they  deserve  all  her  reverence.  Should  she  lay  herself 
open  to  the  ridicule  and  dislike  of  her  husband's  kindred,  she  would  offend 
her  parents-in-law,  and  do  harm  even  to  herself,  whereas,  if  she  lives  on 
good  terms  with  them,  she  will  likewise  rejoice  the  hearts  of  her  parents- 
in-law.  Again,  she  should  cherish,  and  be  intimate  with,  the  wife  of  her 
husband's  elder  brother, — yea,  with  special  warmth  of  affection  should  she 
reverence  her  husband's  elder  brother  and  her  husband's  elder  brother's 
wife,  esteeming  them  as  she  does  her  own  elder  brother  and  elder  sister. 

"  Let  her  never  even  dream  of  jealousy.  If  her  husband  be  dissolute,  she 
must  expostulate  with  him,  but  never  either  nurse  or  vent  her  anger.  If 
her  jealousy  be  extreme,  it  will  render  her  countenance  frightful  and  her 
accents  repulsive,  and  can  only  result  in  completely  alienating  her  husband 
from  her,  and  making  her  intolerable  in  his  eyes.  Should  her  husband 
act  ill  and  unreasonably,  she  must  compose  her  countenance  and  soften  her 
voice  to  remonstrate  with  him ;  and  if  he  be  angry  and  listen  not  to  the 
remonstrance,  she  must  wait  over  a  season,  and  then  expostulate  with  him 
again  when  his  heart  is  softened.  Never  set  thyself  up  against  thy  husband 
with  harsh  features  and  a  boisterous  voice  ! 

"  A  woman  should  be  circumspect  and  sparing  in  her  use  of  words  ;  and 
never,  even  for  a  passing  moment,  should  she  slander  others  or  be  guilty 
of  untruthfulness.  Should  she  ever  hear  calumny,  she  should  keep  it  to 
herself  and  repeat  it  to  none  ;  for  it  is  the  retailing  of  calumny  that  disturbs 
the  harmony  of  kinsmen  and  ruins  the  peace  of  families. 

"  A  woman  must  be  ever  on  the  alert,  and  keep  a  strict  watch  over  her 
own  conduct.  In  the  morning  she  must  rise  early,  and  at  night  go  late  to 
rest.  Instead  of  sleeping  in  the  middle  of  the  day,  she  must  be  intent  on 
the  duties  of  her  household,  and  must  not  weary  of  weaving,  sewing,  and 
spinning.  Of  tea  and  wine  she  must  not  drink  overmuch,  nor  must  she 
feed  her  eyes  and  ears  with  theatrical  performances,  ditties,  and  ballads. 
To  temples  (whether  Shinto  or  Buddhist)  and  other  like  places,  where  there 
is  a  great  concourse  of  people,  she  should  go  but  sparingly  till  she  h»is 
reached  the  age  of  forty. 

"  She  must  not  let  herself  be  led  astray  by  mediums  and  divineresses  and 
enter  into    an    irreverent    familiarity  with  the  Gods,  neither  should    she    be 


506  Woman  (Status  of) 

constantly  occupied  in  praying.  If  only  she  satisfactorily  perform  her  duties 
as  a  human  being,  she  may  let  prayer  alone  without  ceasing  to  enjoy  the 
divine  protection. 

"  In  her  capacity  of  wife,  she  must  keep  her  husband's  household  in 
proper  order.  If  the  wife  be  evil  and  profligate,  the  house  is  ruined.  In 
everything  she  must  avoid  extravagance,  and  both  with  regard  to  food  and 
raiment  must  act  according  to  her  station  in  life,  and  never  give  way  to 
luxury  and  pride. 

"  While  young,  she  must  avoid  the  intimacy  and  familiarity  of  her  husband's 
kinsmen,  comrades,  and  retainers,  ever  strictly  adhering  to  the  rule  of  separa- 
tion between  the  sexes ;  and  on  no  account  whatever  should  she  enter  into 
correspondence  with  a  young  man.  Her  personal  adornments  and  the 
colour  and  pattern  of  her  garments  should  be  unobtrusive.  It  suffices  for 
her  to  be  neat  and  cleanly  in  her  person  and  in  her  wearing-apparel.  It 
is  wrong  in  her,  by  an  excess  of  care,  to  obtrude  herself  on  the  notice  of 
others.     Only  that  which  is  suitable  should  be  practised. 

"  She  must  not  selfishly  think  first  of  her  own  parents,  and  only  secondly 
of  her  husband's  relations.  At  New  Year,  on  the  Five  Festivals,*  and  on 
other  like  occasions,  she  should  first  pay  her  respects  to  those  of  her 
husband's  house,  and  then  to  her  own  parents.  Without  her  husband's 
permission,  she  must  go  nowhere,  neither  should  she  make  any  gifts  on  her 
own   responsibility. 

"  As  a  woman  rears  up  posterity,  not  to  her  own  parents,  but  to  her 
father-in-law  and  mother-in-law,  she  must  value  the  latter  even  more  than 
the  former,  and  tend  them  with  all  filial  piety.  Her  visits,  also,  to  the 
paternal  house  should  be  rare  after  marriage.  Much  more  then,  with 
regard  to  other  friends,  should  it  generally  suffice  for  her  to  send  a  message 
to  enquire  after  their  health.  Again,  she  must  not  be  filled  with  pride  at 
the  recollection  of  the  splendour  of  her  parental  house,  and  must  not  make 
it  the  subject  of  her  conversations. 

"  However  many  servants  she  may  have  in  her  employ,  it  is  a  woman's 
duty  not  to  shirk  the  trouble  of  attending  to  everything  herself.  She  must 
sew  her  father-in-law's  and  mother-in-law's  garments,  and  make  ready  their 
food.  Ever  attentive  to  the  requirements  of  her  husband,  she  must  fold 
his  clothes  and  dust  his  rug,  rear  his  children,  wash  what  is  dirty, -be 
constantly  in  the  midst  of  her  household,  and  never  go  abroad  but  of 
necessity. 

"  Her  treatment  of  her  handmaidens  will  require  circumspection.  These 
low  and  aggravating  girls  have  had  no  proper  education ;  they  are  stupid, 
obstinate,  and  vulgar  in    their   speech.     When    anything   in    the    conduct   of 

*  See  page  357. 


Woman  (Status  of)  507 

their  mistress's  husband  or  parents-in-law  crosses  their  wishes,  they  fill  hex- 
ears  with  their  invectives,  thinking  thereby  to  render  her  a  service.  But 
any  woman  who  should  listen  to  this  gossip  must  beware  of  the  heart- 
burnings it  will  be  sure  to  breed.  Easy  is  it  by  reproaches  and  disobedience 
to  lose  the  love  of  those,  who,  like  a  woman's  marriage  connections,  were 
all  originally  strangers ;  and  it  were  surely  folJy,  by  believing  the  prattle 
of  a  serving-maid,  to  diminish  the  affection  of  a  precious  father-in-law  and 
mother-in-law.  If  a  serving-maid  be  altogether  too  loquacious  and  bad,  she 
should  speedily  be  dismissed;  for  it  is  by  the  gossip  of  such  persons  that 
occasion  is  given  for  the  troubling  of  harmony  of  kinsmen  and  the  disordering 
of  a  household.  Again,  in  her  dealings  with  these  low  people,  a  woman 
will  find  many  things  to  disapprove  of.  But  if  she  be  forever  reproving 
and  scolding,  and  spend  her  time  in  bustle  and  anger,  her  household  will 
be  in  a  continual  state  of  disturbance.  When  there  is  real  wrong-doing,  she 
should  occasionally  notice  it,  and  point  out  the  path  of  amendment,  while 
lesser  faults  should  be  quietly  endured  without  anger.  While  in  her  heart 
she  compassionates  her  subordinates'  weaknesses,  she  must  outwardly  ad- 
monish them  with  all  strictness  to  walk  in  the  paths  of  propriety,  and 
never  allow  them  to  fall  into  idleness.  If  any  is  to  be  succoured,  let  her 
not  be  grudging  of  her  money ;  but  she  must  not  foolishly  shower  down 
gifts  on  such  as  merely  please  her  individual  caprice,  but  are  unprofitable 
servants. 

"  The  five  worst  maladies  that  afflict  the  female  mind  are :  indocility, 
discontent,  slander,  jealousy,  and  silliness.  Without  any  doubt,  these  five 
maladies  infest  seven  or  eight  out  of  every  ten  women,  and  it  is  from 
these  that  arises  the  inferiority  of  women  to  men.  A  woman  should  cure 
them  by  self-inspection  and  salf-reproach.  The  worst  of  them  all,  and  the 
parent  of  the  other  four,  is  silliness.  Woman's  nature  is  passive  (lit.  shade). 
This  passiveness,  being  of  the  nature  of  the  night,  is  dark.  Hence,  as 
viewed  from  the  standard  of  man's  nature,  the  foolishness  of  woman  fails  to 
understand  the  duties  that  lie  before  her  very  eyes,  perceives  not  the  actions 
that  will  bring  down  blame  upon  her  own  head,  and  comprehends  not  even 
the  things  that  will  bring  down  calamities  on  the  heads  of  her  husband 
and  children.  Neither  when  she  blames  and  accuses  and  curses  innocent 
persons,  nor  when,  in  her  jealousy  of  others,  she  thinks  to  set  up  herself 
alone,  does  she  see  that  she  is  her  own  enemy,  estranging  others  and 
incurring  their  hatred.  Lamentable  errors !  Again,  in  the  education  of  her 
children,  her  blind  affection  induces  an  erroneous  system.  Such  is  the 
stupidity  of  her  character  that  it  is  incumbent  on  her,  in  every  particular, 
to  distrust  herself  and  to  obey  her  husband. 

„We  are  told  that  it  was  the  custom  of  the  ancients,    on   the   birth  of  a 


5o3  Woman  (Status  of) 

female  child,  to  let  it  lie  on  the  floor  for  the  space  of  three  clays.  Even  in 
this,  may  be  seen  the  likening  of  the  man  to  Heaven  and  of  the  woman 
to  Earth ;  and  the  custom  should  teach  a  woman  how  necessary  it  is  for 
her  in  everything  to  yield  to  her  husband  the  first,  and  to  be  herself 
content  with  the  second,  place ;  to  avoid  pride,  even  if  there  be  in  her 
actions  aught  deserving  praise  ;  ai^d  on  the  other  hand,  if  she  transgress  in 
aught  and  incur  blame,  to  wend  her  way  through  the  difficulty  and  amend 
the  fault,  and  so  conduct  herself  as  not  again  to  lay  herself  open  to 
censure  ;  to  endure  without  anger  and  indignation  the  jeers  of  others,  suffering 
such  things  with  patience  and  humility.  If  a  woman  act  thus,  her  conjugal 
relations  cannot  but  be  harmonious  and  lasting,  and  her  household  a  scene 
of  peace  and  concord. 

"  Parents !  teach  the  foregoing  maxims  to  your  daughters  from  their 
tenderest  years  !  Copy  them  out  from  time  to  time,  that  they  may  read 
and  never  forget  them  !  Better  than  the  garments  and  divers  vessels  which 
the  fathers  of  the  present  day  so  lavishly  bestow  upon  their  daughters  when 
giving  them  away  in  marriage,  were  it  to  teach  them  thoroughly  these 
precepts  which  would  guard  them  as  a  precious  jewel  throughout  their 
lives.  How  true  is  that  ancient  saying:  'A  man  knoweth  how  to  spend  a 
million  pieces  of  money  in  marrying  off  his  daughter,  but  knoweth  not 
how  to  spend  an  hundred  thousand  in  bringing  up  his  child  !  '  Such  as 
have  daughters  must  lay  this  well  to  heart." 


Thus  far  our  old  Japanese  moralist.  For  the  sake  of  fairness 
and  completeness,  it  should  be  added  that  the  subjection  of 
women  has  never  been  carried  out  in  the  lower  classes  of  Japanese 
society  to  the  same  extent  as  in  the  middle  and  upper.  Poverty 
makes  for  equality  all  the  world  over.  Just  as  among  ourselves 
woman-worship  flourishes  among  the  well-to-do,  bat  is  almost, 
if  not  entirely,  absent  among  the  peasantry,  so  in  Japan  the 
contrary  or  rather  complementary  state  of  things  may  be  observed. 
The  peasant  women,  the  wives  of  artisans  and  small  traders, 
have  more  liberty  and  a  relatively  higher  position  than  the  great 
ladies  of  the  land.  In  these  lower  classes  the  wife  shares  not 
only  her  husband's  toil,  but  his  counsels ;  and  if  she  happen  to 
have  the  better  head  of  the  two,  she  it  is  who  will  keep  the 
purse  and  govern  the  family. 


Wood  Engraving.  509 

With  the  twentieth  century,  the  "  new  woman "  has  begun  to 
assert  herself  even  in  Japan.  Her  name  figures  on  committees ; 
she  may  be  seen  riding  the  "bike,"'  and  more  usefully  employed 
in  some  of  the  printing-offices  and  telephone  exchanges.  Such 
developments,  however,  affect  but  a  small  percentage  of  the  nation. 

Book  recommended.     Japanese  Girls  and  Women,  by  Miss  Bacon. 

Wood  Engraving1.  A  far-off  Chinese  origin  followed  by 
centuries  in  the  chrysalis  stage,  a  wakening  from  torpor  soon 
after  A.D.  1600  when  peace  had  replaced  continual  civil  tumults, 
then  a  gradual  working  up  to  perfection,  a  golden  age  from, 
say,  1730  to  1830,  after  which  sudden  decline  and  death, — such 
we  have  seen  to  be  the  life-history  of  many  Japanese  arts,  such 
is  the  life-history   of  the  lovely  art  of  wood  engraving. 

In  a  country  where  printing  is  done,  not  with  movable  types, 
but  from  wooden  blocks,  and  where  consequently  the  same  process 
would  naturally  serve  for  both  letterpress  and  pictorial  illustra- 
tion, we  may  assume  that  if  the  former  of  these  exists,  the  latter 
probably  exists  along  with  it.  Now  we  know  block-printing  to 
have  been  practised  in  Japan  in  the  eighth  century,  if  not 
sooner.  There  is,  therefore,  no  reason  for  discrediting  the  tradition 
that  the  printed  Buddhist  charms  and  paper  slips  of  that  period 
sometimes  bore  figures  of  divinities,  though  few,  if  any,  of  the 
surviving  specimens  can  with  certainty  be  dated  back  earlier 
than  the  year  1325.  Even  that  date  precedes  by  nearly  a 
century  the  German  block  of  St.  Christopher.  The  earliest 
illustrated  book  at  present  known  is  the  1608  edition  of  a  clas- 
sical romance  entitled  Ise  Mo  no- g  atari, — a  very  crude  production, 
to  some  copies  of  which  a  rough  hand-colouring  has  been 
applied,  not  unlike  that  of  the  old  English  chap-books.  But 
the  father  of  really  artistic  xylography  was  Hishigawa  Moronobu, 
who  flourished  between  1680  and  1701,  and  was  the  first  to 
adopt  that  decorative  use  of  masses  of  black  which  has  lent  such 
piquancy  to  the  colour  scheme  of  Japanese  engravers  since  his 
time.     And    do  not  object,  and  tell  us  that  this  arbitrary  prom- 


510  Wood  Engraving. 

inence  given  to  black  in  certain  portions  of  the  picture  accords 
ill  with  nature.  What  came  next,  somewhere  about  1710,  from 
the  first  artists  of  the  Torii  School, — their  broadsides  in  black 
and  one  tint,  or  black  and  two  or  three  tints,  without  shadows, 
without  perspective,  of  women  with  faces  that  neither  Japan  nor 
any  other  land  has  ever  seen  in  real  life, — these  accord  with 
nature  equally  little.  But  they  display  a  tender  harmony  of 
colouring,  a  strength  of  touch,  a  power  of  composition,  that 
elevate  what  at  first  strike  a  European  as  mere  sketches  to  an 
ethereal  form  of  art.  When  Hokusai  and  Hiroshige  caught  up 
the  tradition,  landscape  was  treated  in  an  equally  idealistic  way. 
These  colour-prints  of  the  eighteenth  and  early  part  of  the 
nineteenth  century — the  work  of  the  Toriis,  the  Katsugawas,  the 
Utagawas,  and  other  schools — stand  alone  and  unrivalled,  re- 
sembling nothing  so  much  as  certain  beautiful  butterflies  of 
fantastic  yet  harmonious  hue. 

The  old  coloured  broadsides  (nishiki-e)  were  published,  as  their 
degenerate  modern  representatives  still  are,  sometimes  in  single 
sheets,  very  often  in  sets  of  three  sheets  to  a  picture,  rarely  in 
more  than  three.  The  first  coloured  book  (copied  from  a  Chinese 
one  dated  1701)  seems  to  have  been  issued  about  1748,  and 
the  xylographic  art  as  a  whole  may  be  said  to  have  reached  its 
culminating  point  about  1765,  under  Suzuki  Harunobu  and  Torii 
Kiyonaga.  Soon  fans  and  other  paper  articles  began  to  be  adorn- 
ed with  engravings  either  black  or  coloured.  In  the  last  quarter 
of  the  eighteenth  century  what  were  called  Surimono  came  into 
fashion, — dainty  little  works  of  art  to  which  our  Christmas 
cards  are  the  nearest  equivalent.  Those  by  Hokusai  (1 760-1 849) 
and  his  pupil  Hokkei  are  particularly  esteemed. 

As  happens  to  all  arts,  time  brought  with  it  greater  complexity 
and  a  more  florid  taste.  Instead  of  the  two  or  three  blocks  of 
an  earlier  day,  as  many  as  thirty  were  now  often  employed ;  and 
the  colours,  after  1830,  grew  gaudy.  The  introduction  of  cheap 
European  pigments,  the  troubles  that  attended  the  opening  of 
the  country,  and  the  influence  of  debased    European   specimens 


Wood  Engraving.  511 

hastened  the  downfall  of  the  art.  Quite  recently  the  broadsides 
of  Gekko  and  one  or  two  other  living  artists  have  given  hopes 
of  revival,  like  those  fine  days  which,  in  late  autumn,  sometimes 
make  us  think  that  summer  is  coming  back. 

The  tools  used  by  Japanese  wood  engravers  and  printers  are  few 
and  simple.  The  picture,  drawn  upon  thin  translucent  paper,  is 
pasted  face  dawnwards  upon  a  plank  of  wood,  usually  cherry  or  box- 
wood— sawn  in  the  direction  of  the  grain  instead  of  across  it,  as  in 
Europe — and  scraped  till  every  detail  of  the  design  becomes 
visible.  The  thin  remaining  layer  is  then  slightly  oiled,  a^4 
the  work  of  engraving  begins,  the  borders  of  the  outline  being 
incised  first  with  a  knife,  and  the  spaces  between  the  lines  of  the 
drawing  excavated  by  means  of  chisels  and  gouges.  The  block 
is  then  washed  and  is  ready  for  use.  The  printer  applies  the 
ink  or  colour  with  a  brush,  and  the  impressions  are  taken  upon 
specially  prepared  paper  by  rubbing  with  a  flat  padded  disc, 
worked  by  hand  pressure.  Certain  gradations  of  tone,  and  even 
polychromatic  effects  may  be  produced  from  a  single  block,  and 
uninked  blocks  are  often  used  for  the  purpose  of  embossing 
portions  of  the  design.  The  effect  of  printing  from  two  or  more 
blocks  was  obtained  in  some  cases  by  preparing  a  single  block 
with  ink  of  different  colours,  or  with  different  shades  of  the 
same  colour.  At  other  times  a  lighter  tint  was  obtained  by 
simply  wiping  portions  of  the  block.  In  the  ordinary  colour- 
prints  the  effects  are  obtained  by  the  use  of  a  number  of  additional 
blocks  engraved  in  series  from  copies  of  the  impression  taken 
from  the  first  or  outline  block.  Correctness  of  register  is  secured, 
simply  but  effectually,  by  means  of  a  rectangular  nick  and  guiding- 
line  repeated  at  the  corner  and  edge  of  each    successive  block. 

The  names  of  the  following  seven  leaders  in  the  development 
of  Japanese  wood  engraving  may  be  useful  to  collectors  : — Hishi- 
gawa  Moronobu  (flourished  16  80-1 701),  Torii  Kiyonobu  (1710- 
1730);  Tachibana  Morikuni  (1 670-1748);  Nishigawa  Sukenobu 
(1678-1750);  Katsugawa  Shunsho  (1770-1790);  Utagawa  Toyo- 
kuni  (1772-1828)  ;  Katsushika  Hokusai  (1760-1849)- 


512  Wrestling. 

Though  it  is  a  little  aside  from  our  subject,  we  may  perhaps 
state  here  that  Shiba  Kokan,  an  artist  who  nourished  early  in 
the  nineteenth  century,  learnt  from  the  Dutch  a  smattering  of 
the  principles  of  linear  perspective,  and  is  said  to  have  introduc- 
ed engraving  on  copper,  in  which,  however,  his  countrymen  have 
done  little  worthy  of  note.  At  the  present  day  lithography  and 
all  the  newest  inventions  in  collotype,  photogravure,  etc.,  etc.,  etc., 
are  availed  of,  and  some  slight  reflex  of  the  artistic  spirit  ani- 
mating their  forefathers  in  a  more  favoured  age  may  be  traced 
in  the  treatment,  by  such  men  as  Ogawa,  of  these  mechanical 
processes.     See  also  Articles  on  Art  and  Printing. 

Books  recommended.  Japanese  Wood  Engravings,  by  Wm.  Anderson,  published 
as  No.  17  (May,  1895)  of  "The  Portfolio,"  of  which  the  preceding  article  is  a  partial 
precis.  The  Colour- Prints  of  Japan.,  by  E.  F.  Strange.  Japanese  Wood  Cutting  and 
Woodcut  Printing,  by  Tokuno   and    Koehler,    published    by  the  Smithsonian  Institution. 

Wrestling'.  The  wrestlers  must  be  numbered  among  Japan's 
most  characteristic  sights,  though  they  are  neither  small  nor 
dainty,  like  the  majority  of  things  Japanese.  They  are  enormous 
men, — mountains  of  fat  and  muscle,  with  low  sensual  faces  and 
low  sensual  habits, — enormous  eaters,  enormous  drinkers.  But 
their  feats  of  strength  show  plainly  that  the  "training"  which 
consists  in  picking  and  choosing  among  one's  victuals  is  a 
vain  supersitition. 

The  wrestlers  form  a  class  apart,  divided  into  grades,  and  having 
traditional  rules  for  their  guidance.  The  most  important  of 
these  refer  to  the  forty-eight  falls  which  alone  are  permitted 
by  the  laws  of  the  sport,  namely,  twelve  throws,  twelve  lifts, 
twelve  twists,  and  twelve  throws  over  the  back.  The  matches 
take  place  in  a  sanded  ring,  encircled  by  straw  rice-bales  and 
protected  from  the  sun  by  an  umbrella-like  roof  supported  on 
four  posts.  The  wrestlers  are  naked,  but  for  a  gay-coloured 
apron.  An  umpire,  who  bears  in  his  hand  a  fan,  stays  in  the 
ring  with  them,  to  see  that  there  be  fair  play  and  strict  obser- 
vance of  the  rules.  The  spectators  are  accommodated  in  the 
boxes   of  what   resembles    a    temporary    theatre   surrounding  the 


Wrestling.  5 1 3 

arena ;  but  as  the  religions  of  Japan  are  nowise  Puritanical,  this 
theatre  is  sometimes  erected  in  the  grounds  of  a  popular  temple. 
The  finest  wrestling  is  to  be  witnessed  twice  yearly  at  the  temple 
of  Eko-in  in  Tokyo,  during  the  months  of  January  and  May. 
Generally  the  combats  are  single,  but  occasionally  sides  are  formed 
of  as  many  as  ten  or  twenty  each.  The  plan  then  is  for  each 
side  to  choose  a  champion,  it  being  incumbent  on  the  victor  to 
throw  three  adversaries  in  succession  before  he  can  gain  a  prize. 
As  he  himself  is  necessarily  blown  by  the  first  or  first  two 
struggles,  while  his  new  adversary  is  quite  fresh  and  springs 
upon  him  without  a  moment's  interval,  this  is  a  great  trial  of 
endurance.  To  instance  the  popularity  of  the  ring,  it  may  be 
mentioned  that  a  single  ten  days'  season  has  been  known  to  draw 
over  28,000  spectators.  Devotees  of  the  sport  are  sometimes 
carried  away  so  far  by  their  enthusiasm  as  to  throw  to  a  favourite 
champion  articles  of  clothing  or  anything  else  that  may  be  at 
hand.  Not  that  the  recipient  retains  any  object  thrown.  One 
of  his  pupils  brings  it  next  day  as  a  token  to  the  owner,  who 
then  redeems  it  by  a  present  of  money. 

The  queerest  historical  episode  connected  with  wrestling  is 
that  the  Japanese  throne  was  once  wrestled  for.  This  happened 
in  the  ninth  century,  when,  the  Mikado  having  died  and  left 
two  sons,  these  wisely  committed  their  rival  claims  to  the  issue, 
not  of  real,  but  of  mimic  warfare. 

What  is  termed  Jiijutsii  is  a  separate  art,  and  ranks  higher  in 
aristocratic  esteem  than  the  ordinary  wrestling  {Sumo)  practised 
by  the  fat  wrestlers.  The  police  are  officially  instructed  in 
Jiijutsu,  and  the  Nobles'  School  and  other  academies  have  classes 
in  it.  Its  principles,  like  those  of  so  many  Japanese  arts,  were 
formerly  handed  down  as  an  esoteric  secret  from  teacher  to 
teacher ;  but  the  leading  idea  has  always  been  clear  enough, — 
not  to  match  strength  with  strength,  but  to  win  by  yielding  to 
strength,  in  other  words,  by  pliancy.  Various  ways  of  causing 
apparent  death  by  pressure,  and  of  recalling  to  life  from  such 
dead    swoons,    bone-setting,    and    also    matters    connected   rather 


5 1 4  Writing-. 

with  moral  than  with  physical  training  are  included  in  the 
course. 

Books  recommended.  Brinkley's  Jafan  and  China,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  65  et  seq.— 
yiijutsu,  by  J.  Kano,  in  Vol,  XVI.  Part  II.  of  the  "  Asiatic  Transactions." — One  similarly 
entitled,  by  T.  Shidachi,  in  Vol,  I.  of  the  "Transactions  of  the  Japan  Society."— Mr. 
Kano's  two  Jujutsu  schools  in  Tokyo  enjoy  great  celebrity. — An  unusual  amount  of 
rubbish  seems  to  have  been  circulated  abroad  on  the  subject  of  yTijutsu  and  its  effects 
on  the  health  of  the  Japanese  nation.  One  imaginative  American  author  goes  so  far  as 
to  inform  us  that,  owing  to  such  appropriate  physical  training,  neither  rheumatism  nor 
phthysis  exists  in  tbis  favoured  land,  nor  even  dyspepsia.  Now  it  so  happens  that 
rheumatism  and  phthysis  rank  among  the  direst  of  Japanese  scourges.  As  for  dyspepsia, 
see  p.  181  of  the  present  work,  end  of  second  paragraph. 

Writing.  The  Japanese,  having  obtained  their  civilisation 
from  China  and  Korea,  were  inevitably  led  to  adopt  the  ideogra- 
phic system  of  writing  practised  in  those  countries.  Its  introduc- 
tion into  Japan  seems  to  have  taken  place  somewhere  about 
A.D.  400,  but  the  chronology  of  that  early  epoch  is  extremely 
obscure. 

According  to  this  ideographic  system,  each  individual  word 
has  its  separate  sign,  originally  a  kind  of  picture  or  hieroglyph. 
Thus,   f^  is  "a  man,"  represented  by  his  two  legs;    pi    is  "the 

moon,"  with  her  horns  still  distinguishable;  Jfc>  is  "ahorse," — 
the  head,  mane,  and  legs,  though  hard  to  recognise  in  the 
abbreviated  modern  form  of  the  character,  having  at  first  been 
clearly  drawn.  Few  characters  are  so  simple  as  these.  Most 
are  obtained  by  means  of  combination,  the  chief  element  being 
termed  the  "  radical,"  because  it  gives  a  clue  to  the  signification 
of  the  whole.  The  other  part  generally  indicate  more  or  less 
precisely  the  pronunciation  of  the  word,  and  is  therefore  called 
the  "phonetic."  It  is  much  as  if,  having  in  English  special 
hieroglyphic  signs  for  such  easy,  every-day  words  as  "  tree," 
"  house,"  "  hand,"  and  "  box "  (a  chest),  we  were  to  represent 
"  box-wood  "  by  a  combination  of  the  sign  for  "  tree "  and  the 
sign  for  "  box,"  a  "  box  at  the  opera  "  by  a  combination  of  "  house  " 
and  "box,"  a  "boxing  match"  by  a  combination  of  "hand" 
and  "box,"  and  similarly  in  other  cases.     The  Chinese  language, 


Writing.  515 

being  unusually  full  of  homonymous  words,  lends  itself  naturally 
to  such  a  method.  Names  of  plants  are  obtained  by  combina- 
tions of  the  character  }JW  "  herb,"  itself  still  to  be  recognised 
as  a  picture  of  herbs  sprouting  up  from  the  soil.  "  The  hand," 
^f-  originally  a  rude  picture  of  the  outstretched  fingers,  helps 
to  form  hundreds  of  characters  signifying  actions.  "  The  heart," 
(d$  gives  numerous  abstract  words  denoting  sentiments  and 
passions.  Similarly  "  the  eye,"  "  the  mouth,"  "  fire,"  "  water," 
"silk,"  "rain,"  "metal,"  "fish,"  are  parents  of  large  families  of 
characters.  The  study  of  this  Chinese  method  of  writing  is  most 
interesting, — so  curious  is  the  chapter  of  the  human  mind  which 
it  unrolls,  so  unexpected  are  the  items  of  recondite  history  which 
it  discloses.  To  give  but  one  example,  the  character  for  "  war," 
JfB--  is  formed  partly  from  the  character  for  "  vehicle,"  jf£- 
because  the  ancient  Chinese,  like  the  ancient  Greeks,  used  to 
go  forth  to  battle  in  chariots. 

Unfortunately,  the  transfer  of  this  system  of  ideographs  from 
China  to  Japan  was  accompanied  by  inevitable  complications. 
Even  supposing  Japanese  organs  to  have  been  able  (which  they 
were  not)  to  reproduce  Chinese  sounds  exactly,  all  Chinese 
teachers  of  the  language  did  not  speak  the  same  dialect.  Hence 
the  gradual  establishment  in  Japan  of  two  or  three  readings  for 
each  character, — one  reading  being  preferred  to  another  according 
to  the  context.  Besides  this,  instead  of  always  imitating  the 
Chinese  sound  as  far  as  possible,  the  Japanese  also  took,  in  many 
cases,  to  translating  the  meanings  of  the  characters  into  their 
own  language,  thus  adding  yet  another  reading.  For  instance, 
the  already-mentioned  symbol  ^^  "  man,"  has  the  two  Chinese* 
readings  fin  and  nin,  and  the  Japanese  translation  hiio.  But 
these  cannot  be  used  indiscriminately.  We  say  jm-riH-sna, 
but  mx-soku  ("a  coolie"),  and  hito  when  we  mean  simply  a 
"  person."     In   some  cases  there  are  Chinese  readings  only,  and 


/.  e.  Japanese-Chinese,  or,  as  it  is  sometimes  termed,  Sinico-Japanese. 


5 16  Writing. 

no  Japanese.  In  some,  a  single  character  has  several  Japanese 
readings,  while  on  the  other  hand,  the  same  Japanese  word  may 
be  written  with  several  different  characters,  just  as  in  English 
each  letter  has  various  sounds,  and  each  sound  may  be  represented 
by  various  letters. 

In  addition  to  the  Chinese  ideographs,  there  came  into  use  in 
Japan  during  the  eighth  and  ninth  centuries  another  system  of 
writing,  called  the  Kana,  derived  from  those  Chinese  characters 
which  happened  to  be  most  commonly  employed.  There  are 
two  varieties  of  Kana, — the  Katakana  or  "side  Kana"  so  called 
because  the  symbols  composing   it  are  "sides,"  that  is,  parts  or 

fragments,    of  Chinese    characters,    as    yf      i,    from  the  character 


4f. 


X2     ro,    from  the  character    ^-% ,  etc.;  and  the  Hiragana, 

which  consists  of  cursive    forms    of  entire  Chinese  characters,  as 

]fy    ha,  in  which  the  outline  of  the  original   ;jJrT    may    still   be 

faintly  traced.  The  invention  of  the  former  is  popularly  attributed 
to  a  worthy  named  Kibi-no-Mabi  (died  A.D.  776),  and  that  of 
the  latter  to  the  Buddhist  saint,  Kobo  Daishi  (A.D.  834).  But  it 
is  more  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  simplification — for  such  it 
really  is,  and  not  an  invention  at  all — came  about  gradually,  than 
to  accept  it  as  the  work  of  two  individuals. 

Whereas  a  Chinese  character  directly  represents  a  whole  word 
— an  idea — the  Kana  represents  the  sounds  of  which  the  word 
is  composed,  just  as  our  Roman  writing  does.  There  is,  how- 
ever, this  difference,  that  the  Kana  stands  for  syllables,  not 
letters.  The  following  tables  of  the  Katakana  and  Hiragana  will 
help  to  make  this  clear.  We  give  the  former  in  the  order 
preferred  by  modern  scholars,  and  termed  Go-ju-on,  or  "Table 
of  Fifty  Sounds "  (though  there  are  in  reality  but  forty-seven), 
the  latter  in  the  popular  order,  called  I-ro-ha,  which  has  been 
handed  down  from  the  ninth  century  : — 


Writing. 

The  Kaiakana  Syllabary. 


517 


T 

a 

ka 

sa 

ta 

na 

ha 

ma 

ya 

y 

ra 

V 

wa 

i 

kj 

shi 

chi 

ni 

hi 

mi 

'J 

ri 

(w)i 

P 

u 

ku 

X 

su 

5> 

tsu 

nu 

7 

fu 

mu 

12. 

yu 

ru 

* 

ke 

se 

te 

ne 

he 

me 

(y)e 

re 

(w)e 

t 

0 

Z2 

ko 

y 

so 

to 

no 

ho 

mo 

3 

yo 

ro 

wo 

The  Hiragana  Syllabary. 


i 

5 

ro 

ha 

13 

ni 

it 

ho 

he 

to 

chi 

ri 

nu 

ru 

wo 

to 

wa 

ka 

X 

yo 

ft 

ta 

It 

re 

so 

0 

tsu 

to 

ne 

4 

na 

ra 

mu 

5 

u 

w(i) 

0 

no 

0 

< 

ku 

ya 

1 

ma 

ft 

ke 

fu 

ko 

1 

>'(e) 

X 

te 

a 

3 

sa 

ki 

yu 

me 

mi 

L 

shi 

(w)e 

hi 

mo 

se 

■f 

su 

The  order  of  the  I-ro-ha  bears  Yvitness  to  the  Buddhist  belief 
of  the  fathers  of  Japanese  writing.  The  syllabary  is  a  verse  of 
poetry,  founded  on  one  of  the  Sutras  and  so  arranged  that  the 
same  letter  is  never  repeated  twice.  Transcribed  according  to 
the  modern  pronunciation,  it  runs  thus  : — 

*  The  deficiency  of  a  true  e  is  supplied  by  %.  (y)e  or   X-   {w)e. 


518  Writing. 

Iro  zva  nioedo, 
Chirinuru  wo — 

Waga  yo  tare  zo 
Tsune  naran? 

Ui  no  ohi-yama 
Kyo  koele, 

Asaki  yume  ntijt, 
Ei  mo  sezu. 

Which  is,  being  interpreted  : 

"Though  gay  in  hue,  [the  blossoms]  flutter  down,  alas  !  Who 
then,  in  this  world  of  ours,  may  continue  forever?  Crossing 
to-day  the  uttermost  limits  of  phenomenal  existence,  I  shall  see 
no  more  fleeting  dreams,  neither  be  any  longer  intoxicated."* 
In  other  words,  "All  is  transitory  in  this  fleeting  world.  Let 
me  escape  from  its  illusions  and  vanities  !  " 

In  both  syllabaries,  consonants  can  be  softenedf  by  placing 
two  dots  to  the  right  of  the  letter.  Thus  fj  is  ka,  but  Jf  is 
ga ;  y~  is  /<?,  but  y*  is  de,  and  so  on.  In  this  way  the  num- 
ber of  letters  is  raised  considerably.  There  are  various  other 
peculiarities,  Japanese  orthography  almost  rivalling  our  own  in 
eccentricity.  Very  few  books  are  written  in  Hiragana  alone — 
none  in  Kaiaka?ia  alone.  Almost  all  are  written  in  a  mixture 
of  Chinese  characters  and  Kana  of  one  kind  or  another,  the 
Chinese  characters  being  employed  for  the  chief  ideas,  for  nouns 
and  the  stems  of  verbs,  while  the  Kana  serves  to  transcribe  par- 
ticle and  terminations.  It  is  also  often  printed  at  the  side  of 
Chinese  characters,  especially  difficult  ones,  as  a  sort  of  running 
comment,  which  indicates  sometimes  the  pronunciation,  sometimes 
the  meaning.  Add  to  this  that  the  Chinese  characters  are 
commonly  written  and  even  printed  in  every  sort  of  style — 
from    the    standard,    or   so-called  "square,"  to  the  most  sketchy 


*  The  present  writer  has  been  guided  by  Pr.  K.  Florenz  to  this  revised  rendering  of  a 
verse  by  no  means  easy  to  translate, 
t  I.e.,  technically  speaking,  surds  can  be  changed  into  sonants. 


Writing.  5 1 9 

cursive  hand, — that  each  Hiragana  syllabic  letter  has  several 
alternative  forms,  that  there  is  no  means  of  indicating  capitals 
or  punctuation,  that  all  the  words  are  run  together  on  a  page 
without  any  mark  to  show  where  one  leaves  off  and  another 
begins, — and  the  result  is  the  most  complicated  system  of  writ- 
ing ever  evolved  upon  this  planet.  An  old  Jesuit  missionary 
declares  it  to  be  evidently  "  the  invention  of  a  conciliabule  of 
the  demons,  to  harass  the  faithful."  At  the  same  time,  it  must 
be  owned  that  the  individuals  thus  diabolically  harassed  are 
principally  those  foreigners  who  make  their  first  attempt  on  the 
language  when  already  of  adult  age.  The  often-repeated  asser- 
tion that  the  ideographs  waste  years  of  school  life  is  simply 
not  true  : — the  Japanese  lad  of  fifteen  is  abreast  of  his  English 
contemporary  in  every  way.  The  Japanese  navvy  makes  as 
good  a  show  at  spelling  out  the  newspaper  or  inditing  a  letter  as 
the  English  navvy.  After  all,  the  average  Englishman  is  not 
only  abreast,  but  actually  ahead,  of  the  average  Italian  in 
reading  and  writing,  notwithstanding  that  Italian  orthography 
could  be  mastered  in  a  day,  whereas  our  own,  in  all  its  ramifi- 
cations, might  occupy  a  lifetime.  The  fact  seems  to  be  that, 
at  a  certain  age,  the  mind  will  absorb  any  system  of  written 
symbols  equally  well.  A  large  number  can,  practically,  be 
learnt  in  the  same  time  as  a  small  number,  just  as  a  net  with 
many  meshes  can  be  taken  in  by  the  eye  as  easily  as  a  net 
with  few.  The  same  holds  good  of  spoken  symbols.  Any 
language  is  assimilated  equally  well  in  early  childhood,  —  a 
complex  inflectional  language  in  precisely  the  same  time  as  a 
simple  monosyllabic  one.  Nay  more :  place  a  child  under 
favourable  conditions,  for  instance,  in  an  English  family  living 
in  France  and  employing  German  governesses  or  tutors,  and  he 
will  absorb  all  three  languages  in  the  same  time,  with  the  same 
ease,  and  with  the  same  perfection  as  a  single  one  would  have 
taken  had  he  remained  in  his  native  village.  Evidently,  there 
exists  a  whole  educational  domain  to  which  arithmetical  reasoning 
does  not  apply. 


520  Writing. 

But  to  return.  If  Japanese  writing  is  (to  us)  a  mountain  of 
difficulty,  it  is  unapproachably  beautiful.  Japanese  art  has  been 
called  calligraphic.  Japanese  calligraphy  is  artistic.  Above  all, 
it  is  bold,  because  it  comes  from  the  shoulder  instead  of  merely 
from  the  wrist.  A  little  experience  will  convince  any  one  that, 
in  comparison  with  it,  the  freest,  boldest  English  hand  is  little 
better  than  the  cramped  scribble  of  some  rheumatic  crone.  One 
consequence  of  this  exceeding  difficulty  and  beauty  is  that 
calligraphy  ranks  high  in  Japan  among  the  arts.  Another  is 
that  the  Japanese  very  easily  acquire  our  simpler  system.  To 
copy  the  handwriting  of  a  European  is  mere  child's  play  to  them. 
In  fact,  it  is  usual  for  clerks  and  students  to  imitate  the  hand- 
writing of  their  employer  or  master  so  closely  that  he  himself 
often  cannot  tell  the  difference.  It  seems  odd,  considering  the 
high  esteem  in  which  writing  is  held  in  Japan,  that  the  signature 
should  not  occupy  the  same  important  place  in  this  country  as 
it  does  in  the  West.  The  seal  alone  has  legal  force,  the 
impression  being  made,  not  with  sealing-wax,  but  with  vermilion 
ink. 

The  influence  of  writing  on  speech — never  entirely  absent  in 
any  country  possessing  letters — is  particularly  strong  under  the 
Chinese  system.  We  mean  that  the  writing  here  does  not  merely 
serve  to  transcribe  existing  words  : — it  actually  originates  new 
ones,  the  slave  in  fact  becoming  the  master.  This  is  chiefly 
brought  about  through  the  exceptional  amount  of  homophony  in 
Chinese,  that  is,  the  existence  of  an  extraordinarily  large  number 
of  words  sounding  alike,  but  differing  in  signification.  In  the 
colloquial  these  are  either  not  used,  or  are  made  intelligible  by 
the  context  or  by  recourse  to  periphrasis.  But  the  writer,  pos- 
sessing as  he  does  a  separate  symbol  for  each,  can  wield  them 
all  at  will,  and  create  new  compounds  ad  infinitum.  Almost  all 
the  technical  terms  invented  to  designate  objects,  ideas,  appliances, 
and  institutions  recently  borrowed  from  Europe  belong  to  this 
category.  Some  of  these  new  compounds  pass  from  books  into 
common  speech  ;  but   many    remain  exclusively    attached  to  the 


Writing.  *  2 1 


written  language,  or  are  at  least  intelligible  only  by  reference  to 
the  latter,  while  at  the  same  time  they  endow  it  with  a  clearness 
and  above  all  a  terseness  to  which  the  colloquial  can  never  attain. 
This  article  may  appropriately  conclude  by  dispelling  an  illusion 
under  which  many  intelligent  persons  labour,  namely,  that  the 
Japanese  nation  is  on  the  eve  of  dropping  its  own  written  system 
and  taking  up  with  ours  instead.  There  is  no  longer  the  slightest 
chance  of  so  sweeping  a  change.  There  once  seemed  to  be — 
somewhere  about  1885 — and  much  time,  money,  and  energy  were 
devoted  to  the  cause  by  an  association  called  the  Romaji  Kwai, 
or  Romanisation  Society,  which  lingered  on  some  eight  or  ten 
years  and  then  perished.  Besides  the  weight  of  custom,  the  most 
obvious  of  the  causes  that  concurred  to  bring  about  this  ill-success 
has  been  anticipated  in  the  preceding  paragraph,  where  mention 
was  made  of  the  superiority  of  the  existing  written  language  to 
the  colloquial  as  a  terse  and  precise  instrument  of  thought. 
Supported  by  the  Chinese  character,  Japanese  writers  can  render 
every  shade  of  meaning  represented  in  the  columns  of  a  European 
newspaper  or  the  pages  of  a  technical  European  work,  whether 
financial,  diplomatic,  administrative,  commercial,  legal,  critical, 
theological,  philosophical,  or  scientific.  Who  could  wish  them 
to  throw  away  their  intellectual  weapons,  and  put  themselves  on 
a  level  with  the  men  of  the  stone  age?  They  could  not  do  so 
if  they  would.  But  a  third  cause— a  more  general  one — must 
be  sought  in  the  fact  that  ideographic  writing  apparently  possesses 
some  inherent  strength  that  makes  it  tend  to  triumph  over  (without 
entirely  supplanting)  phonetic  writing,  whenever  the  two  are 
brought  into  competition  in  the  same  area.  All  the  countries 
under  Chinese  influence  exemplify  this  little  known  fact  in  a  striking 
manner.  Egypt,  too,  retained  its  hieroglyphics  to  the  end.  In 
Europe  such  competition  has  scarcely  taken  place,  except  in  the 
case  of  the  symbols  for  numbers  and  a  few  other  ideas  ;  but  there, 
too,  the  general  law  has  asserted  itself.  Which  is  the  simpler,  the 
more  graphic,  the  more  commonly  used, — "three  hundred  and 
sixty-five"  or  "365,"  "  thirty-five  degrees  forty-one  minutes  twenty- 


522  Yezo. 

three  seconds"  or  "350  41'  23","  "pounds,  shillings,  and  pence " 
or  "£.  s.  d.  ?  "  Doubtless  an  ideographic  system  of  writing  is  in- 
finitely more  cumbrous  as  a  whole  than  its  rival ;  but  it  is  easier 
in  each  particular  case.  Hence  its  victory.  We  commend  these 
considerations — for  additional  proof  or  for  disproof — to  those  who 
have  always  been  taught  to  believe,  not  merely  that  an  alphabet  is 
the  ne  plus  ultra  of  perfection,  but  that  it  is  a  thing  needing 
only  to  be  known  in  order  to  be  adopted. 

Book  recommended.     A  Practical  Introduction  to  the.  Study  of  Japanese  Writing 
(M.'j'i  no  Shirube),  by  B.  H.  Chamberlain. 

Yezo,  often  incorrectly  spelt  Yesso,  and  officially  styled  the 
Hokkaido,  or  "  Northern  Sea  Circuit,"  is  the  northernmost  of  the 
large  islands  that  form  the  Japanese  archipelago.  It  lies,  roughly 
speaking,  between  parallels  41^°  and  45 J°  of  north  latitude — 
the  latitude  of  that  part  of  Italy  which  stretches  from  Rome  to 
Venice ; — but  it  is  under  snow  and  ice  for  nearly  half  the  year, 
the  native  Ainos  tracking  the  bear  and  deer  across  its  frozen 
and  pathless  mountains,  like  the  cave-men  of  the  glacial  age  of 
Europe.  It  is  asserted  that  Yoshitsune,  the  great  Japanese  hero, 
fled  into  Yezo  and  died  there ;  but  little  attempt  was  made  by 
the  Japanese  to  colonise  it  until  early  in  the  seventeenth  century, 
when  the  Shogun  Ieyasu  granted  it  as  a  fief  to  one  Matsumae 
Yoshihiro,  who  conquered  the  south-western  corner  of  the  island, 
establishing  his  capital  at  Matsumae,  some  sixty  miles  to  the 
south-west  of  the  modern  port  of  Hakodate.  His  successors 
retained  their  sway  over  Yezo  until  the  recent  break-up  of  the 
feudal  system.  They  treated  the  luckless  Ainos  with  great  cruelty, 
and  actually  rendered  it  penal  to  communicate  to  these  poor 
barbarians  the  art  of  writing  or  any  of  the  arts  of  civilised  life. 
Frequent  rebellions,  suppressed  by  massacres,  were  the  result. 
In  the  latter  part  of  the  eighteenth  century,  however,  and  in  the 
first  half  of  the  nineteenth,  a  few  Japanese  literati  made  their 
way  into  the  island.  It  is  to  their  efforts — to  the  efforts  of  such 
men  as  Mogami,  Mamiya,  and  Matsura — that  our  first  scientific 


Yezo. 


523 


information  concerning  the  people,  the  language,  and  the  produc- 
tions of  Yezo  is  due.  The  Imperial  government  has  done  all  in  its 
power  to  redress  the  wrongs  of  the  hitherto  down-trodden  natives. 

At  one  time,  the  Russians  endeavoured  to  obtain  a  footing 
in  Yezo ;  but  the  opening  of  Japan  nipped  this  encroachment 
in  the  bud.  Japanese  statesmen  eagerly  plunged  into  the  task 
of  developing  the  resources  of  the  island.  With  this  end  in 
view,  they  created  a  special  executive  department,  entitled  the 
Kaitakushi,  and  engaged  the  services  of  a  party  of  American 
employes  headed  by  General  Capron.  Large  sums  were  expended 
on  model  farms  and  other  public  works,  and  a  fictitious  pros- 
perity set  in.  The  bubble  burst  in  1881,  when  the  Kaitakushi 
was  dissolved,  since  which  time  the  government  of  the  island 
has  undergone  repeated  reorganisation. 

Yezo  is  interesting  from  a  scientific  point  of  view.  The  great 
depth  of  the  Straits  of  Tsugaru,  which  separate  it  from  the  Main 
Island,  shows  that  it  never — at  least  in  recent  geological  epochs — 
formed  part  of  Japan  proper.  The  fauna  of  the  two  islands  is 
accordingly  marked  by  notable  differences.  Japan  has  monkeys 
and  pheasants,  which  Yezo  has  not.  Yezo  has  grouse,  which 
Japan  has  not.  Even  the  fossils  differ  on  both  sides  of 
the  straits,  though  occurring  in  similar  cretaceous  formations. 
Scientific,  or  rather  unscientific,  management  played  a  queer  trick 
with  the  city  of  Sapporo,  if  the  local  gossips  are  to  be  credited. 
The  intention — so  it  is  said — was  to  lay  out  the  city  a  Vameri- 
caine,  with  streets  running  due  north  and  south  and  due  east 
and  west.  The  person  entrusted  with  the  orientation  of  the  plan 
was  of  course  aware  of  the  necessity  of  allowing  for  the  devia- 
tion of  the  compass ;  but  being  under  the  influence  of  some 
misconception,  he  made  the  allowance  the  wrong  way,  and  thus, 
instead  of  eliminating  the  error,  doubled  it.  It  is  pleasant  to  be 
able  to  add  that  the  result  was  a  practical  improvement  undreamt 
of  by  the  mathematicians.  The  houses,  having  no  rooms  either 
due  north  or  due  south,  suffer  less  from  the  extremes  of  heat 
and   cold    than  they  would  have  done  had  they  been  built  with 


524  Yoshiwara. 

some  rooms  on  which  the  sun  never  shone,    and  others  exposed 
to  the  sun  all  the  year  round.* 

Books    recommended.       Murray's     Handbook  for    Japan.— Japan   in     Vezo,    by 
T.  W.  Elakiston.— Vol.  II.  of  Mrs.  Bishop's   Unbeaten  Tracks  in  Japan. 


Yoshiwara.  When  Yedo  suddenly  rose  into  splendour  at 
the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century,  people  of  all  classes 
and  from  all  parts  of  the  country  nocked  thither  to  seek  their 
fortune.  The  courtesans  were  not  behindhand.  From  Kyoto, 
from  Nara,  from  Fushimi,  they  arrived — so  the  native  accounts 
inform  us — in  little  parties  of  threes  and  fours.  But  a  band  of 
some  twenty  or  thirty  from  the  town  of  Moto- Yoshiwara  on  the 
Tokaido  were  either  the  most  numerous  or  the  most  beautiful ; 
and  so  the  district  of  Yedo  where  they  took  up  their  abode 
came  to  be  called  the  Yoshiwara. f  At  first  there  was  no  official 
supervision  of  these  frail  ladies.  They  were  free  to  ply  their 
trade  wherever  they  chose.  But  in  the  year  1617,  on  the 
representations  of  a  reformer  named  Shoji  Jin-emon,  the  city 
in  general  was  purified,  and  all  the  libertinism  in  it — permitted, 
but  regulated — was  banished  to  one  special  quarter  near  Nihom- 
bashi,  to  which  the  name  of  Yoshiwara  attached  itself.  This 
segregative  system,  which  became  general  and  permanent,  has 
had  at  least  one  excellent  result : — the  Japanese  streets  at  night 
exhibit  none  of  those  scenes  of  brazen-faced  solicitation  to  vice 
which  disgrace  our  Western  cities.  Later  on,  in  A.  D.  1656, 
when  the  metropolis  had  grown  larger  and  Nihom-bashi  had 
become  its  centre,  the  authorities  caused  the  houses  in   question 

*  A  specialist  in  such  matters  calls  our  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  story  has,  as 
the  common  phrase  is,  "  not  a  leg  to  stand  on,"  for  the  reason  that  the  deviation  of 
the  compass  is  so  slight  in  this  part  of  the  world  as  to  be  practically  insignificant  even 
when  doubled.     We   leave    the    story,  however,  as  an  instance  of  modern  myth-making. 

t  The  weight  of  authority  is  in  favour  of  this  account  of  the  origin  of  the  name. 
According  to  others,  the  etymology  is  yos hi,  "a  reed,"  and  hara,  "a  moor,''  and  the 
designation  of  "reedy  moor"  would  have  been  given  to  the  locality  on  account  of  its 
aspect  before  it  was  built  over.  There  is  another  Chinese  character  yoshi  meaning 
'  good,"  "  lucky  ; "  and  with  this  the  first  two  syllables  of  the  name  are  now  usually 
written    ^-^. 


Yoshiwara.  525 

to  be  removed  to  their  present  site  on  the  northern  limit  of  Yedo, 
whence  the  name  of  Shin  (i.e.  New)  Yoshiwara,  by  which  the 
place  is  currently  known.  Foreigners  often  speak  of  "a  Yoshi- 
wara," as  if  the  word  were  a  generic  term.  It  is  not  so.  The 
quarters  of  similar  character  in  other  parts  of  Japan  are  never  so 
called  by  the  Japanese  themselves.  Such  words  as  yiijoba  and 
kuruzva  are  used  to  designate   them. 

Japanese  literature  is  full  of  romantic  stories  in  which  the 
Yoshiwara  plays  a  part.  Generally  the  heroine  has  found  her 
way  there  in  obedience  to  the  dictates  of  filial  piety  in  order  to 
support  her  aged  parents,  or  else  she  is  kidnapped  by  some 
ruffian  who  basely  sells  her  for  his  own  profit.  The  story  often 
ends  by  the  girl  emerging  from  a  life  of  shame  with  at  least  her 
heart  untainted,  and  by  all  the  good  people  living  happily  ever 
after.  It  is  to  be  feared  that  real  life  witnesses  few  such  fortunate 
cases,  though  it  is  probably  true  that  the  fallen  women  of  Japan 
are,  as  a  class,  much  less  vicious  than  their  representatives  in 
Western  lands,  being  neither  drunken  nor  foul-mouthed.  On  the 
other  hand,  a  Japanese  proverb  says  that  a  truthful  courtesan  is 
as  great  a  miracle  as  a  square  egg. 

In  former  times,  girls  could  be  and  were  regularly  and  legally 
sold  into  debauchery  at  the  Yoshiwara  in  Yedo  and  at  its 
counterparts  throughout  the  land, — a  state  of  things  which  the 
present  enlightened  government  hastened  to  reform.  Towards  the 
close  of  the  nineteenth  century,  an  agitation  against  the  whole 
system  was  begun  by  the  missionaries,  notably  by  the  Japan  branch 
of  the  Salvation  Army,  supported  by  a  section  of  the  Tokyo  press. 
It  bore  fruit  in  1900,  in  the  passing  of  a  new  law  enabling  any 
girl  to  free  herself  at  once  from  the  fetters  of  shame  by  a  mere 
declaration  of  that  intention  to  the  police.  Over  400  in  Tokyo 
alone  immediately  had  recourse  to  the  means  of  liberation  thus 
unexpectedly  provided,  and  before  the  end  of  the  year  over  1,100 
had  left  with  or  without  the  consent  of  the  keepers  of  the  brothels. 
In  fact,  the  rush  became  so  great  that  many  houses  had  to  close 
their  doors.     When  we  add  that  a  weekly  medical  inspection  of 


26  Zoology. 


the  inmates  of  all  such  places  had  been  introduced  as  early  as 
1874  in  imitation  of  European  ways,  that  each  house  and  each 
separate  inmate  of  each  house  is  heavily  taxed,  and  that  there  is 
severe  police  control  over  all,— we  have  mentioned  all  that  need 
here  be  said  on  a  subject  which  could  only  be  adequately  discussed 
in  the  pages  of  a  medical  work.  Those  interested  in  this  particular 
department  of  sociology  will  find  full  and  curious  details  in  The 
Nightless  City,  published  anonymously  at  Yokohama  in   1899. 

Zoology.  Japan  is  distinguished  by  the  possession  of  some 
types  elsewhere  extinct — for  example,  the  giant  salamander — and 
also  as  being  the  most  northerly  country  inhabited  by  the 
monkey,  which  here  ranges  as  high  as  the  41st  degree  of  latitude, 
in  places  where  the  snow  often  drifts  to  a  depth  of  fifteen  or 
twenty  feet.  But  in  its  main  features  the  Japanese  fauna  re- 
sembles that  of  North  China,  Korea,  and  Manchuria, — one  indica- 
tion among  many  of  the  direction  in  which  the  ancient  land 
connection  of  Japan  with  the  Asiatic  continent  must  be  sought. 
The  Japanese  fauna,  both  terrestrial  and  marine,  is  unusually 
rich.  Take  a  single  instance  : — there  are  already  137  species  of 
butterflies  known,  as  against  some  60  in  Great  Britain,  and  over 
4,000  species  of  moths,  as  against  some  2,000  in  Great  Britain. 

The  chief  mammals  are  the  monkey  {Inuus  speciosus  Tern.), 
ten  species  of  bats,  six  species  of  insectivorous  animals,  three 
species  of  bears,  the  badger,  the  marten,  the  mink  (ilachi),  the 
wolf,  the  fox,  two  species  of  squirrel,  the  rat,  the  hare,  the 
wild-boar,  the  otter,  a  species  of  stag,  and  a  species  of  antelope. 
Most  of  our  domestic  animals  are  also  met  with,  but  not  the 
ass,  the  sheep,  or  the  goat.  Other  missing  animals  are  the  wild 
cat  and  the  hedgehog.  No  less  than  359  species  of  birds  have 
been  enumerated.  We  can  only  here  call  attention  to  the  uguisu 
(Cellia  canians  T.  and  Schl.) — a  nightingale  having  a  different  note 
from  ours — to  the  handsome  copper  pheasant,  to  the  long-tailed 
fowls  (see  Article  so  entitled),  and  to  the  cranes  and  herons  so 
beloved  by  the  artists  of  Japan. 


Zoology.  527 

Of  reptiles  and  batrachians  there  are  but  30  species.  Of 
these,  the  already  mentioned  giant  salamander  is  by  far  the 
most  remarkable,  some  specimens  attaining  to  a  length  of  over 
5  ft.,  and  a  weight  of  over  14  lbs.  There  are  also  some  large, 
but  harmless,  snakes.  The  only  poisonous  snake  is  a  small 
species  of  adder  (Trigonocephalus  Blo?nhoffi),  known  to  the 
Japanese  under  the  name  of  mamushi.  The  country  folk  look 
on  its  boiled  flesh  as  a  specific  for  most  diseases.  The  peasants 
of  certain  thickly  wooded  districts  also  harbour  an  inveterate 
belief  in  the  existence  of  a  kind  of  boa,  which  they  call  uivaba- 
mi,  and  circumstantial  accounts  of  the  swallowing  alive  of  some 
child  or  woman  by  one  of  these  monsters  appear  from  time  to 
time  in  the  vernacular  press.  Zoologists,  however,  have  not  yet 
given  the  Japanese  boa  official  permission  to  exist.  Another 
creature  undoubtedly  mythical  is  the  bushy-tailed  tortoise  so  often 
depicted  in  Japanese  art.  The  idea  of  it  was  probably  suggest- 
ed by  nothing  more  recondite  than  the  straggling  water-weeds 
that  sometimes  adhere  to  the  hinder  parts  of  a  real  tortoise's  body. 

With  regard  to  fish,  Dr.  Rein  remarks  that  the  Chinese  and 
Japanese  waters  appear  to  be  richer  than  any  other  part  of  the 
ocean.  The  mackerel  family  (S  comber  oidtz),  more  particularly, 
is  represented  in  great  force,  the  40  species  into  which  it  is 
divided  constituting  an  important  element  of  the  food  of  the 
people.  But  the  fish  which  is  esteemed  the  greatest  delicacy  is 
the  iai,  a  kind  of  gold-bream.  The  gold-fish,  the  salmon,  the 
eel,  the  shark,  and  many  others  would  call  for  mention,  had  we 
space  to  devote  to  them.  Altogether,  the  number  of  species  of 
fish  inhabiting  or  visiting  Japan  cannot  fall  far  short  of  400. 

Insects  are  extremely  numerous,  but,  excepting  the  beetles, 
moths,  and  butterflies,  are  not  yet  even  fairly  well-known,  so  that 
a  rich  harvest  here  awaits  some  future  naturalist.  There  are 
two  silk-producing  moths,  the  Bombyx  mori  and  the  Anihercea 
yamamai.  Of  dragon-flies  the  species  are  numerous  and  beautiful. 
There  are  but  few  venomous  insects.  The  gadfly  torments  the 
traveller   only    in    Yezo    and    in    the    northern    half  of  the  Main 


528  Zoology. 

Island  ;  the  house-fly  is  a  much  less  common  plague  than  in 
Europe,  except  in  the  silk  districts,  and  the  bed-bug  is  entirely 
absent.  On  the  other  hand,  the  mosquito  is  a  nightly  plague 
during  half  the  year  in  all  places  lying  at  an  altitude  of  less 
than  1,500  feet  above  the  sea,  and  in  many  even  exceeding  that 
height ;  the  buyu — a  diminutive  kind  of  gnat — infests  many 
mountainous  districts  during  the  summer  months,  and  the  flea 
is  unpleasantly  common  in  summer. 

The  chief  Crustacea  are  fresh-water  and  salt-water  crabs,  to- 
gether with  crayfishes,  which  here  replace  the  lobsters  of  Europe 
and  are  often  erroneously  termed  lobsters  by  the  foreign  residents. 
One  species  of  crab  (the  Macrocheirus  Kcempferi  Sbd.)  is  so 
gigantic  that  human  beings  have  been  killed  and  devoured  by 
it.  Its  legs  are  over  a  yard  and  a  half  in  length.  There  is 
another  species — a  tiny,  but  ill-favoured  one — which  is  the  object 
of  a  singular  superstition.  The  common  folk  call  it  Heike-gani, 
that  is,  the  Heike  crab.  They  believe  these  creatures  to  be  the 
wraiths  of  the  Heike  or  Taira  partisans,  whose  fleet  wras  annihilated 
at  the  battle  of  Dan-no-ura  in  A.D.    1185. 

Of  molluscs,  nearly  1,200  species  have  been  described  by 
Dunker,  the  best  authority  on  the  subject ;  and  his  enumeration 
is  stated  by  Dr.  Rein  to  be  far  from  exhaustive.  Of  sea-urchins 
26  species  are  known,  and  of  starfishes  12  species.  The  coral 
tribe  is  well  represented,  though  not  by  the  reef-forming  species 
of  warmer  latitudes.  There  are  also  various  kinds  of  sponges. 
Indeed,  one  of  the  most  curious  and  beautiful  of  all  the  many 
curious  and  beautiful  things  in  Japan  is  the  Glass  Rope  Sponge 
{Hyalonema  Sieboldi),  whose  silken  coils  adorn  the  shell-shops  at 
Enoshima. 

The  rapid  extinction  of  many  living  creatures  in  Japan  is 
scarcely  less  matter  for  regret  than  the  cutting  down  of  the 
forests  to  furnish  railway  sleepers  and  materials  for  the  manufac- 
ture of  paper.  The  deer  have  been  practically  exterminated 
since  the  present  writer  came  to  live  in  the  country,  and  so 
have    the    herons.      As    for    the    cranes,   they  seem  to  have  been 


Zoology.  529 

all  either  killed  or  frightened  away  during  the  late  sixties,  when 
they  ceased  to  be  preserved  as  a  royal  bird.  The  pheasants 
have  sadly  diminished  in  number,  owing  to  wholesale  slaughter 
with  the  object  of  exporting  their  feathers  to  grace  ladies'  bonnets 
in  foreign  lands ;  and  various  species  of  small  birds  are  now 
sharing  the  same  fate,  as  many  as  a  hundred  thousand  at  a  time 
being,  it  is  said,  shipped  off  that  the  tiny  feathers  may  be  dyed 
various  colours  and  set  to  various  uses  in  female  adornment  or 
art  manufacture.  Such  are  some  of  the  drawbacks  of  foreign 
intercourse  and  of  cheap  and  rapid  transport.  Europeanisation 
is  not  all  gain.  The  European  tourist  seeks  distant  lands  with 
intent  to  admire  nature  and  art.  But  nature  is  laid  waste  for 
his  sake  or  for  the  sake  of  his  friends  at  home,  while  art  is 
degraded  and  ultimately  destroyed  by  the  mere  fact  of  contact 
with  alien  influences. 

Books  recommended.  The  above  Article  is  founded  chiefly  on  Rein's  Japan, 
p.  157  et  seq.  Rein's  treatment  of  the  fishes  is  specially  full,  but  a  good  resume  of 
the  other  classes  is  given,  together  with  references  to  the  chief  authorities  on  each. — 
See  also  Blakiston  and  Pryer's  Catalogue  of  the  Birds  of  Japan,  printed  in  Vol.  X. 
Part  I.  of  the  "  Asiatic  Transactions  ;  "  Pryer's  Catalogue  of  the  Lepidoptera  of  Japan, 
in  Vol.  XI.  Part  II.  and  Vol.  XII.  Part  II.  of  the  same,  with  Additions  and  Correc- 
tions in  Vol.  XIII.  Part  I.;  also  the  same  author's  Rhopahcera  Nihonica  and  J.  H. 
Leech's  Butterflies  from  Japan.     Both  these  are  beautifully  illustrated. 


INDEX 


(  When  there  are  several  references,  the  most  important  is  given  first.) 


ABACUS 


Abacus,  1 1 ,  260. 

Abdication,  13,  32,  231, 
246. 

Aborigines,  22,  28,  187, 
188. 

"  Abt "  engines,  404. 

Academy  of  Music  (To- 
kyo), 343 ;  132. 

Actors,  464,  465,  467  ; 
I5°>  346,  402, 463,  482. 
Ac'resses,  464,  467,  482. 
Acupuncture,  14,  315. 
Adams  (Sir  Francis),  489. 
Adams    (Will),     15,    73, 

253-4,  424- 
Adder,  527. 
Addresses,  95,  125. 
Administration,   217-18; 

210,  238,354. 
Adoption,  17,  312. 
Advertisements,  137,  159, 

277,  3Q1- 
Aeba  Koson,  292. 
.Age  (how  reckoned),  12, 

>' 
Agitators,  135. 

Agriculture,  19,  132,434, 

478. 
Ashikaga    dynasty,    233, 

427,  217. 
Ainos,  22,  27,  28,  68,  193, 

208,  210,232,403,414, 

427,  520,  522,  523. 
Aizu,  237,  412. 


ANGLICAN    MISSIONS 

Akahito,  378. 
Akiha  Daisuke,  264. 
Albrecht    (Rev.    G.    E.), 

335- 
Albums,  72,  195. 
Alcock  (Sir  R.),  67,  255. 
Alcoves,  36,  270,  449. 
Altering      names,      347, 

426. 
Amado,  35. 
Amami  -  Oshima,       306, 

3o7- 

Amaterasu,  224,  420, 
44c. 

American  Board  Miss- 
ions, 330. 

American  influence,  364, 

365 ;  73, 131. 132, 154, 

lh'o,  182,  313,  328,  329, 

353,363,394,488,523, 

5?4. 
Amida,  79. 
Annua,  315. 
Amusements,  25,90,  112, 

126,  158,162,195,215, 

439- 
Ancestor    worship,     159, 

162,  247,  419. 
Anderson  (Dr.  Wm.),  56, 

7i  ;    47,    5i,   68,    166, 

270,308,359,  512. 
Anecdotes,    54,   84,    147, 

148,156,207,339,400, 

466. 
Angels  (Buddhist),  442. 
Anglican  missions,  328. 


.Anjiro,  322. 
Anniversaries,     159-163, 

338-9,  409. 
Anthem  (national),  343. 
Anthologies,    378 ;     284, 

294,  358. 
Anti-foreign  feeling,  158, 

237,  239,  366,  462. 
Antimony,  212. 
Ants,  446  ;  161. 
Aoki  (Viscount),  94. 
Aoyama  Gakuin,  330. 
Apprentices,  160,  162. 
Arai  Hakuseki,  103,  290. 
Arashi-yama,  81,  90. 
Archaeology,    Pref.,    27, 

37- 
Architecture,  34,  72,  8^, 

152,  247,  389,  482. 
"  Ariraas,"  70. 
Arisaka  gun,  45. 
Aristocracy,  see  Nobility. 
Arisugawa  (Prince),  395. 
Armour,  41, 317  534,  315. 
Army,  42,  132,  183,  184, 

241,  297,  353- 
Arnold  (Sir  Edwin),  3,  4, 

260. 
Arsenals,  350  ;  45. 
Art,  47  ;  28,  30,  67,  68, 

7S,   79,   83,    100,    104, 

132,  135, 136,  146,  i59> 

176,  194,  2c6,  215,  223, 

234,  245,  249»  255,  270, 
289,316,339,390,392, 

423,439,444,451,456, 
457,  5°9,  52o,  529- 


532 


Index. 


ART  JAPONAIS    (l') 

'■'■Art  Japonais  (Z'),"  56, 

71. 

Artisans,    95,     181,    248. 

297.  3°°>  37i54io,  45 1. 

484. 
"  Artistic  Japan,"  56. 
Artists,  47-55  ;  194,  197, 

206,  274. 
Art-motives,  54,  59,  68. 
"  Asahi-Zaktira,"  292. 
Asaina  (hero),  117. 
Asaina  (journalist),  352. 
Ashinoyu,  319  ;  83.' 
Ashitaka    (Mount),    473, 

474- 

Asiatic  Society  of  Japan, 
56,  et  pass. 

"  Asiatic  Transactions," 
56-7,  68;  13,  14,  19, 
25,  27,  34,  39,  41,  42, 
56,  60,  75,  79,  80,  83, 
104,  105,  112,  150,  172, 

173,  177,198,223,243, 
250,  264,  270,  284,  296, 

305,307,309,316,335, 
337,344,399,417,423, 
435,449,455,48o,498, 

5I4,529- 
Aso-san,  130,  209. 
Assassins  honoured,    220 

Assaults     on    foreigners, 

239- 

Aston  (W.  G.),  Pre/.,  66  ; 
34,  68,  104,  173,  223, 
242,  256,  264,  278,  294, 
296,382,402,423,43!, 
467,  483- 

"  Astrologia  Giappone- 
se,"  164. 

Astrology,  173,477. 

Atami,  319. 

"  Atami  (Guide  to),  140." 

Athletics,  133,  158,  238. 

Atkinson        (Hoffmann), 

369- 
Atsumori,  156. 
Audsley      and       Bowes' 

works,  71,  85,  317. 
Authors  (ancient),  284-9. 
Authors  (modern),    289- 

293- 


Autumn   tints,    96,    174, 

296,  440,  472. 
Avatars,  420. 
Ayrton    (Prof.     W.    E.), 

321. 
Azaleas,  174. 


Babies,  92-3,  481. 
Bachelors  (rare),  313. 
Bacon  (Miss  A.  M.),  66, 

93,  '35,  251,  3X4,  342, 

509- 
Badgers,    121  ;     85,    86, 

115,155,526. 
Baelz  (Dr.  E.),    41,    115, 

118,  119,  250,  270,401, 

403- 
Baka,  247. 
Bakin,  289,  294,  346. 
Baku,  444. 

Ballard  (Miss  S.),  155. 
Balls,  437  ;  26,  112-3. 
Bamboos,    57  ;    54,    55, 

106,  156, 168,  222,  267, 

286,372,374. 
Bandai-san,  209. 
Banko  ware,  392. 
Banishment,  233,  239. 
Banking,  109,  no,  249. 
Banquets,  147,  178,  433. 
Ban-tan,  408. 
"  Banzai"  89. 
Baptists,  330. 
Basho,  378,  294. 
Baskets,  58. 
Batchelor  (Rev.  J.),  25  ; 

23,  24,  68. 
Bateren,  234. 
Bathing,    60 ;    23,    297, 

319,320,321,482. 
Bays,  210. 
Bazaars,  82. 
Beads,  34. 
"  Bean  moon,"  441. 
Beans,  20,  62,  160,  161, 

177,  179,  181, 44r,  455. 
Bears,  23,  428,  522,  526. 
Beche-de-mer,  226. 
Becker,  (J.  E.  de),  284. 


Bedding,  36. 
Beer,  138,  157,415- 
Bell,  (Dr.),  413. 
Bellessort  (A.),  69. 
Bells,  55,  160,  316,  370. 
Benkei,  55. 
Benten,  308. 
Beri-beri,  268. 
Betrothal,  310. 
Beverages,  178,  415  ;  16 1, 

452. 
Bible  (versions  of),  330. 
Bibliography,  62,  64. 
Bimetallism,  no,  299. 
Bingham  treaty,  490. 
Bird  (Miss),    see  Bishop 

(Mrs.). 
Birds,  526  ;  40,  105,  127, 

149,  205,228,255,428, 

443,  444,  529. 
Birddo-yuzen,  136. 
Birthdays,  62. 
Bishamon,  308. 
Bishop,  Mrs.  (Miss  Bird), 

68;  25,  260,  524. 
Bishops,  327,  328. 
Black  (Ishii),  440. 
Black   (J.   R.),   69,   264, 

35i- 
Blackening  the  teeth,  63. 
Blakiston    (T.    W.),    68, 

529- 

Blind  shampooers,  315. 
Block-printing,  509,  511; 

396,  397- 
Boating,  412. 
Bodhisattvas,  473. 
Boissonade     de      Fonta- 

rabie,  182.  279. 
Bon  festival,  113,  162. 
Bonin  Islands,  208. 
Books    (Japanese),    396, 

and  see  Literature. 
Books  on  Japan,  64 ;  62, 

et  pass. 
Botany,  73  ;  57,  358,  360, 

430,  454,  497- 
Bounties,  240,  426, 
Bouquets,   176,  205,441 
Bourse,  238. 
Bousquet  (G.),  69,  294. 
Bowing,  415  ;  76. 


Index. 


533 


Boys,   92,   93,    161,  163, 

181,  331.346. 
Brahminism,      77,      246, 

308. 
Bramsen  (Wm,),  72,  231, 

479- 

Bran  bags,  61. 

Braziers,  36,  373. 

Bread,  178,  180,  269,  500. 

Bribery,  218,  240,  429. 

Brides,  310,  311. 

Brinkley  (Capt.  F.),  67, 
243»393;  56,  85,  150, 
208,  219,246,274,278, 
317,428,447,449,460, 

British  Museum,  30,  33, 

56,  68. 
Broadsides,  510,  511. 
Brocade,  136;  81. 
Bronze,  315,  321  ;  29,  81, 

and  see  Metal-work. 
Brownell  (C.  L  ),  69. 
Buccaneers,  424. 
Buddha,  77,87,  161,  173, 

306,323.371.420,473. 
Buddhism,    76;    13,    32, 

34,  47.  73,  75-  83,  86, 

108,  131,  135,  146,150, 
152,  155,158,159,177, 
198,  204,207,217,231, 
237,  238,  246,  247,  252, 
275,  286,  288,  296,  305, 
308,316,335,338,340, 
34i,347,37o,37i.38i, 
395,  396,  408,  409,  420, 
421,422,434,442,452, 
453,  457, 47i,  483,507, 
517. 

Buddhist  hymns,  381. 
"  Buddhist        Praying 

Wheel,"  (The).  396. 
Bullock-carts,  268. 
Bureaucracy,    218,    238, 

435- 
Burial,  204;   29-32,  108, 

109,  291,  307,  317. 
Burton   '(Prof.    W.    K.), 

195. 
Burying  alive,  30. 
"  Bus  hi  do"  72,  41 7. 
Business    morality,    260, 


CATHOLICISM 

261, 487;  95. 

Busse  (Dr.  L.),  80,  259. 

Busts,  158. 

Butterflies,  526,  529,  55, 

7i. 
Byng  (S.),  56. 


Cabinet       (government), 

218. 
Cabinets  (wooden),  80. 
Cables,  461. 
Cakes,  179. 
Calendars,     1 63-4,    477, 

478;   12,96,  231,  238, 

441. 
Calligraphy,     520;      51, 

270. 
Camellias,  174,  273. 
Cameron  (Sir  E.),  260. 
Camphor,  80  ;  73,  187. 
Canadian       missionaries, 

328. 
Cannibalism,  28. 
Capital    cities,    80,    218, 

357,  388. 
"  Capital  of  the  1  ycoon," 

67,  255- 
Capital  punishment,  280; 

219,  282. 
Capron  (General),  523. 
Card-playing,      25,      27, 

153,  238. 
Caron  (Abbe),  278. 
Cars  (mythological),  164. 
Carts,  264,  268. 
Carving,  83  ;  30,  35,  158, 

247. 
"Cash,"  108. 
Cassia-tree,     440;     173, 

255. 
Caste,  95. 
Castles,     151,    152;    83, 

127,  314- 
"  Catalogue   of  Japanese 

Paintings,"  56,  68,  166, 

308,  359. 
Catholicism        (Roman), 

322;    17,  67,  76,  151, 

243,  332,  422. 


CHINA-JAPAN   WAR 

Cats,  85  ;  54,  84,  155. 

Cattle,  19. 

Celestial  stems,  477. 

Census,  150,  388. 

Ceramics,  see  Keramics. 

Cereals,  177,  268,  269. 

Cereals  (the  five),  20. 

Chambers  of  Commerce, 
238;  88. 

"Changes  (Book  of)," 
121 ;  104. 

Cha-no-ytt„  456;  391, 
453,  and  see  Tea  Cere- 
monies. 

Chanting,  341. 

Chaplin-Ayrton  (Mrs.), 
27,  92. 

Characteristics  of  the 
Japanese,  250 ;  3,  8,  9, 
22,  34,  43,  46,  48,  52, 
66,  71,  84,  89,  92,  94, 
136,  154,  179,  180,  181, 
183,  184,  195,  197,  218, 
219,  220,  221,  240,  242, 
244,  248,  249,  276,  295, 
300-4,  309.  312,  313, 
3i9,32i,333,35o,356, 
382, 389,  392,  402,  407, 

408,  422,  438,  439,  448, 
449,  450,  4S6,  487-8, 
500. 

Characters,    see   Chinese 

Characters. 
Charity  Hospital,  137. 
Charlevoix  (Father),  334. 
Charm-bags,  1 25  ;  87- 
Charms,    86 ;     23,    125, 

5°9- 
Chauvinism,  87,  331,  329, 

352,  421. 

Checkers,  215,  25. 

Cherry-blossom,  89;  81, 
82,  174,  180,  455. 

Chess,  90,  215  ;  25. 

Chikamatsu  Monzaemon, 
464,  465. 

Children,  92  ;  17,  47,  61, 
62,  63,  87,  100,  109, 
124,  125,  165-6,  251, 
268,  337,  338,  346,  480. 

Chin  (pug-dogs),  400. 

China-Japan  war  (of  1894 


534 


Index. 


CHINA-JAPAN"    WAR 

-5),  24i,  35°;  43,  45, 

110,187,249,297,356, 
395,426,495. 

China-Japan  war  (of 
1900) ;  43,  241. 

"  China's  Business  Meth- 
ods and  Policy,"  261. 

"  China  Sea  Directory," 
72,  100,  211. 

Chinese  and  Japanese 
compared,  260-1. 

Chinese  books,  296 ; 
229. 

"  Chinese       Characteris- 

*  tics,"  264. 

Chinese  characters,  514; 
398;  33,  55-  123,  193, 
222,249,277,284,355, 
381,  397,408,443,484, 
515,516,518,519,520, 

524- 

Chinese  influence,  231 
-2 ;  8,  14,  19,  20,  29, 
34,  45,  47,  48,  49,  55, 
59,  60,  75,  77,  78,  79, 
81,  83,  89,  90,  94,  102, 
103,  111,115,121,131, 
134,  135, 148,  149,  155, 
160,  165,  172-3,  176, 
186,  187, 193,  196,  197, 
210,  215,  217,  221,  223, 
229,  232,  239,  246,  248, 
249,  259,270,275,278, 
284-5,  290,  295-6,307, 
3H,3i6,335,339,34o, 
347,355»37i,375,384, 
39i,396,397,4oi,402, 
409,413,423,439,441, 
444,462,477,478,503, 
509,510,514,515,516, 
520,  521. 

Chinese    language,    210, 

296,515,519. 
Chinese  notices  of  Japan, 

28,231,450. 
Chivalry,  4 1 5-7. 
Cho  Densu,  48. 
Cholera,  120. 
Chopsticks,  58,  181,  395. 
Choshu     (province     and 

clan),  94,  132,210,217, 

234,  236,  237. 


Christianity,  322 ;  4,  5, 
17,  76,  77,  79.  88,  152, 
153,  166,  234,  252,  408, 
422. 

Christianity      Japonised, 

333- 
Christian     names,     345, 

346,  347- 
Christian  nations   (hypo- 
crisy of ),  4,  5,  334. 
Christmas  cards,  510. 
"  Chronological  Tables," 

72,231,479. 
Chrysanthemum     (order 

of  the),  114. 
Chrysanthemums,        175 

-6;   55,  82,   173,  174, 

222,  430. 
Chujo  Hime,  135. 
Churches,  see  Missions. 
"  Chushingura"  191. 
Cigarettes,  480. 
Cipango,  249. 
Cistercian  friars,  327. 
Cities,  80;  34,  218. 
Civil   wars,    233-4;     13, 

232,  236,  349. 
Clans,  94. 

Clarke  (E.  B.),  Pre/. 
Class  distinctions,  95  ;  19, 

150,  235,  416, 435,  447^ 
448,451,465,512. 

"  Classical  Poetry  of  the 
Japanese,"  198,  468. 

Classicism,  49  ;  47,  288. 

Classics  (Confucian),  102, 
103,  131. 

Classics  (Japanese),  285 
-6,  376-8,421,423. 

Clay  cylinders  and  fig- 
ures, 30,  83. 

Cleanliness,  60,  254. 

"Clifford  Wilkinson 
case,"  496-7. 

Cliffs  (in  Formosa),  187. 

Climate,  95  ;  21,  180,  296, 
306,389,405,  412,417 
-8,  522. 

Clocks,  474;  129,  154. 

Clogs,  123 ;  58, 

Cloisonne,  100;  81,  317. 

Coal,  212  ;  187,  208. 


CONVENTIONALISM 

Cock-fighting,  158. 
Cocks  (long-tailed),  304. 
Codes,  279-80;  71,  182, 

238,  240,  283,  284,  491, 

493,  496. 
Coffins,  204. 
Coins,  109;  71,  88,  182, 

299. 
"Coins    of   Japan,"    71, 

ill. 
Collotype     albums,      72, 

195,512. 
Colour-prints,    509 ;    50, 

87,  359,  465. 
Comedy,  197-8,  463-4. 
"  Commentaries   on    the 

Constitution,"  219, 293. 
Commerce,  see  Trade. 
Common  people,  95,  123, 

217,250,289,300,  310, 

312,381,402,439,445, 

463, 474, 477, 484,  508. 

Communications  (minis- 
try of ),  218,  394. 

Commutation  of  incomes, 
416,  238. 

Compass  (points  ot  the), 

445,  48i. 
Concerts,  340,  344,  438. 
Concessions         (foreign), 

487  489,491,494. 
Concubinage,    312,    318, 

337- 

Conder  (J.),  41,  42,  71, 
176,  177,  208. 

Confucianism,  102 ;  26, 
121,  131,  176,275,  288, 
290,  335,  336,  365,  397, 
408,421,422,503. 

Confucianists  (Japanese), 
103,  104,  290. 

Congee,  160. 

Congregationalists,  330. 

Conscription,  46;  18,  42, 

188,350. 
Constitution      (political), 
218;  114,136,159,220, 

239,  240,  257,  280,  293, 

332,356,492. 
Consumption,    100,    251, 

265,  5 14. 
Conventionalism,       104; 


Index. 


535 


CONVOLVULI 

48-50,  54,    196,    376, 

460. 
Convolvuli,  174,  358. 
"Cooking"  records,  243 

-4,  236. 
Coolies,  90, 123,  125,  181, 

188,  253,  297,  484. 
Copper,  212  ;  109. 
Coral,  528;  124,  306. 
Cormorant-fishing,     105, 

172. 
Cosmogony,  224;  77. 
Costume,  see  Dress. 
"Costume  (History  of )," 

42. 
Cotton  mills,  183. 
Counting  (system  of),  12. 
Courant  (Maurice),  72. 
Couriers,  393. 
Court  (Imperial),  45,  46, 

67,   81,   93,   125,    156, 

160,  205,317,380,420, 

422,  435- 
Court  of  Kyoto,  232,  233, 

234,  236;    137,  285-6, 

295,  428. 
Courtesans,   524-6 ;   150, 

390- 
Cox  (W.  D.),  Pref. 
Crabs,  528. 
Cranes,  528. 
Crasset  (Father),  334. 
Craters,  130,  193,  320. 
Crazes  (fashionable),  157. 
Cremation,  108  ;  33,  247, 

37i,45i- 

Crests,  222. 

Criminals,  221,  451,  and 

see  Law. 
Cross,  223,  325. 
Crown   (Order    of   the), 

114. 
Crown  Prince,  395. 
Crown  Princess,  344. 
Crows,  441,  172;  53,  55, 

86,  226. 
Crustacea,  528. 
Cryptomerias,  272,  411. 
Crystals,  212. 
Cultivated  area,  19,  209. 
Curios,    222,    447,    456, 

458,  459- 


Currency,  109,  299. 

Currents,  210. 

Cycle    (of   years),     in, 

477,478;  63. 
Cycles  (of  legends),  225, 

228-9. 
Cylinders  (clay),  30. 
Cyclopaedias,  290. 
Czar,  239,  265. 


Daggers,  27,  34,  447. 

Daibutsic  (Hakone),  83. 

Daibntsu  (Kamakura), 
316,  82. 

Daibutsu  (Nara),  81. 

Daikoku,  308. 

Daikon,  179. 

Daimyo,  in  ;  41,  46,  94, 
95,  105,  132,  189-191, 
196,  197,  217,  222,  234, 
236,  237,  238,  243,  245, 
267,  323,  325,  337,  348, 
354,  356,  383,  393,  4i6 
-7,  457,  485,  486,  499- 

"  Daimyo  boxes,"  222. 

"  Dai  Nihon  Kobunsho," 

245. 
"  Dai  Nihonshi"  285. 
"  Dai     Nihon    SMryo* ' 

245- 
Daita  (monk),  207. 
Daitokuji,  457. 
Dakyu,  384. 
Damascening,  317. 
Damp,  96,  98,  100,  271. 
Dances,    112;    26,    158, 

195,238,433,438.462, 

464. 
Dancing-girls,   113,   433, 

457- 
Dango-zaka,  175;  82. 
Danjuro,  346,  467. 
Dan-no-ura,     232,     348, 

528. 
Daruma,  453. 

Das  hi,  164. 

Date  Masamune,  325. 

Davidson  (J.  W.),  189. 

Death,  104,  189,  219,  228, 


DISCOVERY   OF  JAPAN 

252,269,280,306,337, 
409,  446. 

Decorations        (medals), 

ii3- 

Decorations  (New  \  ear), 

160. 
Decorative   art,   52 ;   33, 

34,  35.  54,  55,  84,  100 

-1,  136. 
Deer,  81,  174,  228,  272, 

273,369,38o,428,522, 

526.      - 
Deforestation,  80,  528. 
Devils,  see  Demons. 
Democratic    spirit,    382, 

356;    44,    131,    134-5, 

459- 
Demoniacal      possession, 

115;  85,  168. 
Demons,    155,    161,  443, 

445- 

Dengyo  Daishi,  452. 

Dening  (Walter),  14,  19, 
69,  258,  264,  435. 

Deutsche  Gesellschaft  fur 
Natter-  tind  Volker- 
kunde  Ostasiens,  57, 
69,  et  pass. 

Departments  of  Govern- 
ment, 218. 

Deshima,  153,  266,  429. 

Dialects,  277. 

Diaries  (classical,  286.) 

Diagrams  (magic),  121. 

Dickins  (F.  V.),  191,  363. 

Dickson  (W.),  219. 

Dictionaries,  277 ;  158, 
278,  278,  287,  293. 

"  Die     yafianer"      256, 

264,  335- 
Diet  (food),  177  ;   19,  21, 

247,  268. 
Diet   (parliament),    217; 

88,  240,  279,  289,  356. 
Dinners,    178,    363,  438, 

457,  459- 
Diplomacy,  362,  438,  491 

-6. 
u  Diplomatist's    Wife    in 

Japan  (A),"  70. 
Discomfort,  36. 
Discovery  of  Japan,  151, 


53^ 


Index. 


DISEASES 

234. 
Diseases,   251  ;    91,    115, 
161,  265,  268,  274,  320, 

339<  358,  389,  514. 
Dittrich  (R.),  342,  344. 
Divers  (Dr.  E.).  320,  341. 
Divination,  121,  168,421. 
Divine  generations,  224. 
Divorce,   503;    313,   309 

-10. 
Dockyards,  350  ;  184. 
Dog-days,  162. 
Dogs,  400;  26,  86,   115, 

120,  122,314,388,476. 
"  Ddji  Kyd,"  335,   337  ; 

289. 
Dolls,  92-3,  161. 
Dolmens,  32,  33,  34,  71. 
"  Dolmens     and     Burial 

Mounds  in  Japan,"  34, 

7i,3i7,393,449. 
Domestic    animals,    526, 

19. 
"  Domestic    Architecture 

in  Japan,"  41. 
Doors,  35,40,  57. 
Douglas      (Commander), 

349- 
Doshisba  College,  330. 
"  Dowa,"  288. 
Doyo,  162. 
Dragons,     443-4 ;      194, 

446,  476. 
Drama,  462;   78,197-8, 

468,  and  see  Theatre. 
Dramatists,  465. 
Draughtiness,  36,  37. 
Dreams,    121,   227,   308, 

444- 
Dress,    122 ;    26,  82,  88, 
158,  238,286,310,311, 
37o,43i,432,443,446, 

45o,  457, 469,  476, 5°°- 
Dresser  (Dr.  C),  71,  317. 
Dubois    (Dr.    F.),     341, 

344- 

Duck-bunting,  126. 
Dumolard  (H.),  69. 
Duncan  (Miss  S.  J.),  70, 

146. 
Dunker,  528. 
Dutch  in  Japan,  153-5  > 


EMPERORS 

15,    16,    67,    131,  154, 
185,  235,  239,  266,  296, 

349,366,392,429,475, 

486,  488,512. 
Dwarfed  trees,  206. 
Dynasty  (Imperial),  318. 
Dyspepsia,  181,  514. 


Earthquakes,     127;     41, 

444- 

East  (Alfred),  53. 

Ebisu,  308;  162. 

Economics,  72. 

Eczema,  93. 

Edgeworthia  papyri/era, 
360. 

Education;  131  ;  78,  103, 
182,  183,188,218,220, 
282,  327,329.330,331' 
343,  349' 367,  379»  434, 
519- 

Education  (female),  133; 

I32,33i,502. 

Educational         societies, 

434,  133,  435- 
EE-EE.  135. 
Eels,  162. 
Ehmann  (P.),  400. 
Eight,    224,    358;      121, 

168. 
"Eight  Years  in  Japan," 

40,  70. 
Eisai,  456. 

Eitel  on  Buddbism,  79. 
Eki,  121  ;  104. 
Eko-in,    168;     82,    298, 

5I3-. 
Electric  trams,  264. 
Elephants,  212. 
Ellis  (A.  J.),  341,  344. 
Embassies,  236,  324,  325, 

366,  429,  489- 
Embroidery,  135  ;  52,  81. 
Emigration,  389-90,  297. 
Emperor  (present),  317  ; 

42,    45,    76,   139,  I59> 

i65,349,38o,395. 
Emperors,   233,  and  see 

Mikado. 


EU  ROPE  AS  ISATION 

Employes,    see    Foreign 

Employes. 
Empress  (present),   136 ; 

63,  126,  344,  380,  434- 
Empresses,  136,  78,  205, 

228-9. 
Enamel,  100;  71,  316. 
Encho,  150. 

Encyclopaedias,  290,  293. 
Engineering  College,  131, 

132. 
English  as  she  is  Japped, 

137. 
English  influence,  15,  16, 
no,  132,  154, 181,  184, 
235»  236,  238,  328,  343, 
349,351,352,353,354, 
360,365,403,424,461, 

488,491,493- 
English    language,     131, 

134,238,352,369,491, 

496. 
Englishman    (first  in  Ja- 
pan), 15. 
Englishmen      Japonised, 

65,  440. 
Engraving,  509. 
Enoshima,  309,  528. 
Epaminondas,  291. 
Epigram,  377. 
Equinox,    159,   161,   162, 

446. 
Era,  478,  479. 
Esotencism,      146,      176 

206,  340,341,460,513. 
Eta,  149. 
"Eternal     Land,"      226, 

228. 
Ethical  system,  72,    102, 

104,  336,   365-7,   415, 

419,  420,422. 
Eurasians,  150. 
European  aggression,   5, 

235-6,   241,  242,   325, 

334- 

European  ideas  concern- 
ing Japan,  9,  10,  66, 
154,253-262,319,382, 
401,  436-7,  460,   489, 

501,  5°2- 
Europeanisation,         151, 

237-4o;  i,4,  5,  6,7,9> 


Index. 


537 


EUROPEANS 

14,  26,  34,  40,  4I»  42, 
45.46,  51,  55»  62,  79, 
85,  87,88,98,  103,108, 
no,  113,114, 125, 126, 
129,  131-3,  136,  137, 
157,  163, 165,167, 173, 
1781  179,  180,  181-5, 
217,  218,219,240,244, 
249,  262,  275,  278-84, 
290-2,  311,  316,  322, 

338,  343.  349,  35i, 
352-3,363,364,366-7, 
371,373,380,389,390, 
392,  393-4.  395,  397, 
398,403,406,411,415, 
424,425,433,434,437, 
438,  450,  45i,  455, 
460-1,  465,  466,  474, 
476,  478, 480, 485, 490, 
492,498,500,510,  520, 
521,523,526,529. 

Europeans  as  they  appear 
to  the  Japanese,  241, 
251,263. 

"  Evolution  of  the  Japa- 
nese," 66,  89,  259,  264, 
403,411. 

Exhibitions,  239;  51. 

Exogamy,  314. 

Exorcism,  116,  117,  120; 
66,  169. 

Exports,  487-8  ;  22,  265, 

432,  455,  529. 
Extermination  of  animals, 

528,  529. 
Exterritoriality,  489,  491. 


Faience,  391,  392. 
Fairy-tales,  155  ;  24,  247, 

286. 
Family  relations,  17,  18, 

165,  166,  279,  309-12, 

336,    337,    409,     500, 

502-8,  525. 
Fans,    156 ;   46,   54,  58, 

123,  i94,359,462,5ios 

512. 
"Fans  of  Japan,"  157. 
Farming,  19,  523. 


Fashionable  crazes,  157. 
Fashions,  124. 
Fasting,  337. 
Fathers-in-law,     502     et 

seq.\  337. 
bauna,  526  ;  523,  212. 
"  Feudal      and     Modern 

Japan,"  69. 
Feudalism,  232,  415  ;  42, 

69,   83,   94,    103,    in, 

112,  113,  217,219,  222, 

234-5,  238,   293,   296, 

306-7,  353,  356,   428, 

479,  486,  501. 
Fend losa  (Prof.  E.),  56. 
Fesca  (Dr.  M.),  22. 
Festivals,  159;   62-3,  92 

-3,  174,  357,  37i,  409, 

442,  478. 
Fiction,  285,  289,  439-40. 
"Fifty  Sounds"  (table  of), 

516. 
Filial  piety,  165  ;  14,  102, 

I03,357,409,504,525- 

Finance,  19,  72,  no,  183, 
238,  280,  297. 

Fines,  2S0,  353. 

Firando,  16. 

Fire,  446  ;  36,  168,  247. 

Fire-arms,  45  ;  42,  151. 

Fire-drill,  247. 

"  Fire-Fade,"  226. 

Firemen,  167,  156. 

Fires,  166 ;  130. 

"  Fire-Shine,"  226. 

Fire- walking,  168. 

Fireworks,  162. 

Fish,  527;  50,  58,  93, 
128,  160,  177-81,  268, 
269,  528. 

Fish  (paper),  93,  161. 

Fishing,  171  ;  58,  105, 
208. 

Five,  341,357. 

Flags,  172:  222,  370. 

Flies,  527-8,  172. 

"  Flights  Inside  and  Out- 
side Paradise,"  68. 

Flora,  74,  and  see  Flow- 
ers. 

Florenz  (Prof.  Dr.  K.), 
68,  296,  402,  403,  423, 


FRANKLINISM 
431,467,518. 

Flower-cards,  25,  177. 

Flowers,  173  ;  54-5,  89, 
104,  196,  205,  206,  207, 
234,  255,  305,  347, 
357-8,  430,  446. 

"  Flowers  of  Japan,"  176  ; 

71,177. 
Fogs,  99. 

Folk-lore,  164  ;  78. 
Folk-lore  (Aino),  24,  25. 
Food,  177  ;  21,  22,  58,  62, 

160-2,  247,   268,    306, 

358,395,4o6,459,527. 
Foot-gear,  123,482. 
Foot-prints    of    Buddha, 

37i. 

Foreign  employes,    181 ; 

43,  88,  no,  114. 
Foreign  food,  181. 
Foreign  Office    (British), 

496. 
Foreign       residents       in 

Japan,  496. 
Foreign   style   (of  archi- 
tecture), 41. 
Foreigners       (murderous 

assaults  on),  239. 
"  Forest  Flora  of  Japan," 

76. 
Forfeits,  185. 
Forgeries  (literary),  231, 

186. 
Formosa,  185,  208-9  *  44, 

73,    80,    99,   100,  210, 

239,  241,297,388,389, 

390,  426,  461,  465. 
Formosan        expedition, 

187,  239.  < 
Fortune-telling.  121. 
Forty-seven  Ronins,  189, 

222,  465. 
Fossils,  211,  212,  523. 
F'owls  (long-tailed),   304, 

526. 
Fox-deity,  161,  370,  and 

see  In  an*. 
Foxes,  115;  85,  86,  185, 

526. 
Fox-owning,  118. 
Franciscan  monks,  324. 
"  Franklinism,''  366. 


533 


Index. 


FRANKS 

Franks  (Sir  W.),  71. 

Fraser  (Mrs.  Hugh),  70. 

French  influence,  42,  43, 
45,  182,  183,  184,235, 
241,  278,281,282,283, 

350,394,489,495. 
Friars  (Catholic),  17,  324. 
"  From  Sea  to  Sea,"  70. 
Frost-pillars,  417. 
Fruit,  180;  89,  179,  180, 

255- 
Fudo,  396. 
Fuji,  191  ;  140,  210,  309, 

369,  37°,  371 »  444, 468, 

474- 
"Fuji  Hyakkei"  194. 
Fujivvara    family,     232 ; 

217,345. 
Pukuchi  Genichiro,  293. 
Fuhi-ja,  455. 
Fukurokuju,  308. 
Fukushima  (Colonel),  158. 
Fukuzawa  Yukichi,  365 

-8;  293;  132,133,290, 

408,  502. 
Fun,  195. 

Funeral  tablets,  347. 
Funerals,    204;    29,    30, 

108,  114,  158,  291,  306, 

307,332,445. 
Furniture    (absence    of), 

36,  92. 
Fushimi,  236,  459,  524. 
Fusiyama,  see  Fuji. 
Fusuma,  35. 
*'  Fiizoku  Gzvaho"  113. 


Gaku,  270. 

Gakushi  Kwai-in,  14,  19, 

434,  435- 
Gambling,  25,  157. 
Game  (birds  and  beasts), 

428;  126. 
Games,   25,   26,   90,   91, 

133,  185,215,245,384, 

388,  457. 
Garden-parties,  158,  438. 
Gardens,  205  ;  35,  36,  59, 

71,  234,439,481. 


GLOBE-TROTTERS 

Gateways,    482-3 ;     160, 

423. 
Geerts  (A.J.C.),  68,  212. 
Geisha,  433;  113. 
Gekk5,  511. 

Gemmyo  (Empress),  32. 
Genealogies,  17. 
Genii,  443. 
"  Genji      Mono-g atari" 

294-5 ;  245,  286. 
Genroku,  479. 
Genroku  Odori,  113. 
Gentry,  95  ;  19,  123,  217, 

314,  345.  415,  435- 

Geographical  Society 
(Royal),  307. 

Geography,  208 ;  22,  69, 
128,  185,306,357,358, 
430,  522. 

Geology,  Pre/.,  211  ;  127, 
192,  523,  526. 

"German  Asiatic  Trans- 
actions," 57,  69 ;  22, 
80,  216,  250,  270,  278, 
296,  344, 400,  403.  4 > 8. 

German  Evangelical  Mis- 
sion, 331. 

German  influence,  43, 45, 
125,  132,  158,  182,  183, 
241,278,281,316,  331, 

343.491*495- 

German        investigators, 

430-1;    69,    153,   223, 

266,  40  r,  429. 
Ghosts,  443. 
Gidayu,  464. 
Gifu,  105-108. 
Gilbertson  (E),  449. 
Ginkakuji,  458,  81. 
Ginza,  41. 
Gion  festival,  164. 
Girls,  62,   93,    125,    132, 

133,161,  163,310-311, 

331- 
Girls'   schools,  133  ;   132, 

331- 

Glacial  epoch,  74-5. 
Glass,  154,  248,  298,  407. 
Glass  beads,  34. 
"  Glimpses  of  Unfamiliar 

Japan,"  65. 
Globe-trotters,   212  ;    64, 


70,    135,    183-5,    252, 

261,  297,451. 
Go  (game),  215  ;  91. 
Goa,  322. 
Gobang,  215. 
Goble,  264. 
Goblins,  443. 
"  Gobnnsho"  80. 
God     (how    translated), 

152. 
Go  -  Daigo       (Emperor), 

268. 
"  Godless  month,"  162. 
Godowns,  36,  161. 
Gods  and  Goddesses,  77, 

224-7  ;  55,  79»  83,  86, 

87,    160-3,    l69»    *92. 

i93>  I94,359,396,4i8, 

419,420,440,442,471. 

5o5- 
Gohei,  423  ;  169,  170. 
Go-ju-on,  516. 
Gokinai,  29,  21 1. 
Go  -  Komei      (Emperor), 

108. 
Gold,  212;  34,  109,  187, 

273,  274,  299. 
Gold  standard,  109,  in, 

240,  249,  299. 
Gonse  (Louis),  49,  56,  71. 
Grace  before  meat,  23. 
Gordon  (Rev.  L.M.),  335. 
Goto  Islands,  323. 
Government,     216;     89, 

94,  125,  132,  133,  182, 

183,237,238,244,248, 

250,  490-2. 
Gowland  (Wm.),  34  ;  30, 

33.  71,  317.  393,  449- 

''  Grammar  of  the  Japa- 
nese Written  Lan- 
guage, 278. 

Grammars  (Japanese), 
277;  287. 

Grasmann  (Dr.  E.),  80. 

Graves,  29-32,  150,  191, 
222,  307,338,409. 

Gray  (Asa),  73. 

"  Greater  Learning  for 
Women,"  502. 

Greek  influence,  47. 

Greene  (Rev.  Dr.  D.  Q, 


Index. 


539 


GREGORY 

HISHIGAWA  MOROXOBU 

HOTOTOGISU 

Pre/.,  68,  335,  423. 

"  Handbook  of  Colloquial 

History,   223  ;    217  ;   67, 

Gregory  (G.E.),  105,  172. 

Japanese,"  278. 

69,  73,    80,    243,  244, 

Gabble     (Henry),     455, 

"  Hanging  bridges,"  439. 

285,293,294,318,361, 

498. 

Happy  dispatch,  221. 

363-4,  402-3,  497- 

Griffis  (Rev.  W.E.),  64; 

Hara-kiri,  219  ;   1 89-91, 

"  History  of  Japanese  Lit- 

26, 242,  365. 

235,238,416,427,447. 

erature,"  66,  104,  255, 

Grouse,  523. 

Hardy  (Arthur  S.),  335. 

264,  293,  295,  296,  382, 

Gubbins  (J.  H.),  68,  71, 

Hares,  173,  225,  428,  441, 

467. 

112,  284. 

476,478,526. 

"  History  of  Japan  from 

Guerin     (Abbe     T-    N.), 

Hari  no  kuyo,  163. 

A.  D.    1542   down    to 

Pref. 

Harvard  graduates,  170. 

the      Present     Time," 

Guide-books,  287,  and  see 

Hasegawa's  crape  story- 

67,     243,      and      see 

Murray's  Handbook. 

books,  69,  155. 

Murdoch. 

Guilds,    147,    439,    486, 

ITassaku,  477. 

Hitchcock  (Romyn),  34. 

487. 

Hassen,  478. 

Hitomaro,  378. 

Gulfs,  210. 

Hats,  123 ;  58. 

Hitotsubashi,  236,  427. 

Gulf-stream     (Japanese), 

Hawaii,  5,  ^89. 

"  Hiza  Kzirige,"  289. 

see  Kuro-shio, 

Hawes    (Lfeut.    A.G.S.), 

Hizen  clan,  94,  217. 

Gulick   (Rev.  S.  L.),  66, 

349,  182. 

Hobart  -  Hampden      (E. 

89,     259,      264,     403, 

Hawking,  127. 

M.),  278. 

411. 

Health.    251;    93,    100, 

Hoffmann  (Dr.  J.  J.),  223. 

Gunboat  policy,  334,  361, 

268. 

Hojo    family,    233  ;    81, 

365. 

Hearn  (Lafcadio),  65,  66, 

217. 

Gunji  (Lieut.),  343. 

246,  264,  348,  464. 

"ffijdki,"  286. 

u  Gunsho  Ichiran"  62. 

"  Heart  of  Japan  (The)," 

Hokkaido,  522. 

Gutzlaff(Rev.  Ch.),  360. 

69. 

Hokkei,  510. 

Gwyther  (J.  H.),  260. 

Heco  (Joseph),  351. 

Hokku,  377. 

Gyogi  Bosatsu,  391. 

Heike,  see  Taira  family. 

Hokusai,  51  ;  49,  56,  192, 

Heimin,  95. 

197,  289,346,359,510, 

Hemi,  16. 

5"- 

H 

Henson  (H.V.),  Pref. 

Holidays,   159,  475  ;  62, 

Hepburn  (Rev.  Dr.'j.C), 

63,93,371. 

Hades,  224-5  »  60,  420. 

278,  329. 

Holme  (Ch.),  60. 

Haga  (V.),  230. 

Heraldry,  222;  113. 

Holtham  (E.  G.),  40. 

Hair-dressing,    123,  124, 

Hidari  Jingoro,  84. 

Holy  places,  369-70,  359. 

125,  299,  307. 

Hideyoshi,  234  ;   458-9  ; 

Hondo,  208. 

Hair-pins,  124,  307. 

69,  149,  323-5,  349- 

Honour    (code  of),    415, 

Haka-mairi,  338. 

Nig  an,  159. 

417. 

Hakkei,  358. 

Higo  rebellion,  238. 

Hooker  (Sir  J.),  73. 

"  Hakken      Deti"      289, 

Hildreth  (R.),  72. 

Hori  Chiyo,  451. 

294. 

Hillhouse  (Prof.    Percy), 

"  Horin,"  396. 

Hakluyt  Society,  17. 

170. 

Horses,  44;   30,  33,  54, 

Hakodate,  236,  237,  357, 

Hi-no-mar  u,  172. 

84,  161,273,  479,  481. 

364,  489,  522. 

Hirado,  16,  424. 

Horyuji,  47. 

Hakone  district,    140- 1  ; 

Hira-gana,  516-9. 

Hosokawa  Yusai,  149. 

83,  193- 

Hirano  water,  320. 

Hospitality,  437. 

Hakone  (Lake),  140,  195. 

Hirata    Atsutane,      288, 

Hospitals,  137,  362. 

Hako-niwa,  207. 

421. 

Hot  baths,  60-  62. 

Hakuga-no-Sammi,  147. 

Hiroshige,  51,  359,  510. 

Hotei,  308. 

Half-castes,    150-1  ;    22, 

Hisakata,  471. 

Hotels,  98,  297,  301. 

23,  403. 

Hishigawa       Moronobu, 

Hotoke,  77,  400. 

Hanashi-ka,  440. 

509;  50,511. 

"  Hototogisu,"  292. 

54o 


hide: 


HOURS 

Hours     (how     counted), 

474-5- 

House-cleaning,  160. 

Houses,  35. 

House-tax,  497. 

"  How  I  Became  a  Chris- 
tian," 72,  335. 

Huish    (M.  B.),    56,   85, 

393- 
Human  sacrifices,  30. 
Humbert  (Aims),  68. 
"Hundred     Poets,"     25, 

378. 
Husbands    (position   of), 

3ii,  3T3>  5oo,  S04. 
"  Hyaku  -  nin     Is  -  ski/," 

373. 


Ice-cream,     459. 

Ichi-Roku,  475. 

"Ideals  of  the  East,-'  73. 

Ideographs,  514-6;  277, 
397,  521,  and  see 
Chinese  Characters. 

Iemitsu.  23^,  348,  424. 

Iemochi,  236. 

Ieyasu,   234-5  ;    is,     16, 

103.  34S,  393,  397,  424, 

522. 
Ikao,  61. 
Ikegami,  371. 
Illustrated  books  (early), 

5°9- 
Images,  83;   30,  33,  76, 

77- 
Imbrie  (Rev.  Dr.  Wm.), 

278. 
Imitativeness,  8,  259,  262. 
Imperial     Family,     318; 

45,  127,  136,  159,  205, 

217,  222,  227,  233,  280, 

338,  344,  353, 38°,  395, 

4i9,44o,479- 
Imperial  insignia,  1 73. 
Imperialism,    8,   76,  159, 

318,411. 
Impersonality,     66,     84, 

276. 
Imports,  488  ;  22,  489. 


Inagaki  (M.),  73,  S8. 
Inari,      161  ;      81,      163, 

37o. 
Incense  parties,  245. 
"  Inclusive  "      reckoning, 

12,339,445- 
Indian     influence,     246 ; 

37,  47,  77,  155,  212, 
308,  423,  483,  and  see 
Buddhism. 

Indian  summer,  296. 

Industrialism,  248  ;  4,  6, 

110,432. 
"Industries    of    Japan," 

68,  et  pass. 
Inferiority    (supposed    of 

the  Japanese),  242, 262, 

489. 
"  In      Ghostly      Japan," 

246. 
Ingwa,  395. 
htkyo,  14,  246. 
Inlaid  metals,  317. 
Inland    Sea,    208 ;     100, 

349,35o,355>357,369, 

404,  412. 
Inns,  370,  481. 
Ino  Chukei,  309. 
Inoue    (Count),  94,    132, 

238. 
Inoue  (Jukichi),  69,  434, 

440. 
Inoue      (Tetsujiro),  422.. 
Insatsu  Kyoku,  no. 
Insects,  527. 
Insubordination,      154-5, 

383-4. 
Insurance,  167,  249,  301, 

494. 
Intercalary  months,  476. 
Intoxicants,  415. 
Inu  Ou  Mono,  388. 
Investigators  (European), 

431- 

Irises,  82,  174,  207. 

I-ro-ha,  516-8. 

"  I-ro-ha    Bunko,"     191, 

289. 
Iron,  28,  34. 
Irrigation,  19,  20. 
Isawa     (S.),     340,     341, 

342. 


JAPAN   MAIL 

Ise»  37,  87,  112,  156,247, 

405,  412,  420,  421.      <i 

"  Ise  Mono-gatai'iy  286, 

509. 
Ise  On  do,   112. 
"Island  Life,"  74. 
"  Island  of  Formosa^ Past 

and     Present    (The)," 

189. 
Islands,  208,  358,  522. 
Ito  (Baron  Miyoji),  352. 
It5  (Jinsai),  103. 
Ito  (Keisuke),  73. 
Ito    (Marquis),    94,    132, 

218,  219,  239,  293. 
Iwakura     (Prince),    489, 

490. 
Iwamoto  (Mrs.),  291. 
Iwasaki  family,  426,  425  ; 

300. 
Iwasa  Matahei,  50. 
Izanagi,   224 ;    60,    230, 

471. 
Izanami,  224  ;  230,  471. 
Tzu,  210. 
Izumo,  224-7;   30,    118, 

120,  162,247,402,421. 


Japan  (charm  of),  439. 
"Japan "  (Dr.  Rein's),  68, 

et  pass. 
Japan  (various  names  of), 

249-50. 
"Japan  and  China,"  67, 

243  ;  and  see  Brinkley. 
"Japan  and  its  Art,"  56, 

85,  393- 
" Japan  as    it    Was    and 

Is,"  73- 
Japan   closed,  424  ;  236, 

389,  485. 
Japan   for  the  Japanese, 

88,  235,  237,  279. 
"Japan  Herald,"  408. 
''Japan  in  Days  of  Yore," 

69. 
"Japan  Mail,"   219;   56, 

60,  259,  296. 
Japan     Mail     Steamship 


Index. 


54i 


JAPAN   OPENED 

KATSTJGAWA   SCHOOL 

KOKU 

Company,  425. 

« Jitsu-go    Kyo,"     335, 

Katsuo-Imshi,  39. 

Japan     opened,     235-6 ; 

289. 

Katsura  (Count),  94. 

364,487,492,510. 

Jizo,  396;  83. 

Kawa-biraki,  1 62. 

Japan   Society,    57 ;    34, 

Jodo  sect,  78. 

Kawachi,  29,  80. 

157,  243,449,483,5H. 

John  Kino,  185. 

Kawamura  (Count),  94. 

"Japan  Times,  352. 

Joint-stock       companies, 

Kawara-mono,  150. 

Japanese  (origin  of),  28, 

158,249- 

Kawara-yu,  61. 

401. 

Jdruri,  464. 

Kegon,  159. 

Japanese  (words  lacking 

Josetsu,  48. 

Keiki,  236. 

in),  55,  276. 

"  Journal  Asialique"  72. 

Keiko  (Emperor),  228. 

"Japanese  Alps,"  70. 

Journalists,     see     News- 

" Keikoku  Bidan,"  291. 

Japanese     and      Chinese 

papers. 

Keio  Gijiku,  367  ;  132. 

compared,  260-1. 

Judges,  280-3,  300,  491, 

Ken,  185. 

"Japanese     Bride,"     72, 

492. 

Keramics,  390;  67,  71. 

3H. 

Jujutsu,  513;  514. 

Kibi-no-Mabi,  516. 

Japanese  Characteristics, 

Ju-ni-shi,  476. 

Kido  Koin,  351. 

see  Characteristics. 

Junker  (Prof.  A.),  343. 

Kimmei  (Emperor),  77. 

"  Japanese      Girls      and 

Junks,  424,  425,  426,  486. 

Kimono,  122,  123,  124. 

Women,"  66,  93,  135, 

Jurojin,  308. 

Kindergartens,  132. 

251,314,342,509. 

Kinkwa-zan,  99,  369. 

"Japanese  Homes,"  72; 

Kinokuni-ya         Bunzae- 

'35,4L 

K 

mon,  486. 

Japanese     influence     on 

Kipling  (Rudyard),  70. 

European  art,  53. 

Kalniki,  463,  465. 

Kissing,  415;  375. 

"  Japanese    Plays   Versi- 

Kaga, in,  391. 

Rita-Shirakawa  (Prince), 

fied,"  467. 

Kago,  267. 

395- 

"Japanese  Village,"  342. 

Kagura,  112. 

Kitchen-middens,  27,  28. 

"  Japanischer    Humor" 

Kaibara  Ekken,  290,  502. 

Kite  (order  of  the),  114. 

56,  444- 

Kaitakushi,  523,  25. 

Kites  (toy),  26. 

"  Japanische     Dramen" 

"  Kajin  no  Kigu,"  291. 

Kitsuki,  464. 

467. 

Kakemono,  270 ;  36. 

Knapp  (A.M.),  69. 

"  Japan's       Volksiuirth- 

Kakke,  268  ;  251. 

Knott  (Dr.  C.  G.),  12,  13, 

schaft,"  72 ;   22. 

Kamakuia,  81,  316;  62, 

128,  309,  341,  344. 

«'  Japoneries  cTAutomne, 

233,  3i6. 

Knox  (Rev.  Dr.  G.  W.), 

257- 

Kaempfer  (E.),  266  ;  73, 

68,  104. 

ie  Japon  Vrai  {Le)"  87. 

254,  430. 

Kobe,  497;  185,389,403, 

Jernigan  (T.  R.),  261. 

Kan,  315. 

406,  489. 

Jesuits,    322-6;    16,    73, 

Kana,    516-9;    398,461. 

Kobo    Daishi,    83,    372, 

x52,  335,  519. 

Kanaoka,  see  Kose. 

516. 

Jikkan,  477. 

Kanda  (Baron  K.),  27. 

Koehler,  512. 

Jimmu    (Emperor),     226 

Kanda  (festival),  164. 

Koda  family,  343. 

-7;  114,  159,  223,230, 

Kane-jaku,  499. 

Kofu,  248. 

318,346,  402,479- 

Kano,  (J.),  514. 

Koharu,  296. 

Jingo  (Empress),  228-9  5 

Kano  painters,  49. 

Koizumi  Yakumo,  65. 

136588,230,346. 

Kappore,  113. 

"  Koji/a,"  284;  75,   105, 

Jingo    feeling,    87,     152, 

Karakami,  35. 

223,  227,  229,  230,  231, 

497-  . 

Karatsu,  148. 

250,  285,287,313,423. 

Jinrikisha,      264;      123, 

Kata-kana,  516,  517,  518. 

"  Kojiki  Den,''  287,  288. 

267,  297. 

Kato  Hiroyuki,  290. 

"  Kohns/iu,"    378;    148, 

"Jinrikisha   Days  in  Ja- 

Kato Tamikichi,  148. 

149,  294 

pan,"  69. 

Katsugawa      school      of 

"  Kokoro,"  65. 

Jippensha  Ikku,  289,  294. 

painters,  510,  511. 

Koku,  499  ;  425. 

542 


Index. 


KOKUSEN-YA 

Kokusen-ya,  187,  465. 
Kokyu,  341. 
Komei  Tenno,  159. 
Kompira,  369,  370. 

Konshinkwai,  163. 

Ko  -  no  -  hana  -  saku  -  ya  - 

hime,  194. 
Korea     (invasions      of), 
228,  234,  349,  390,  397, 
88. 

Korean  flora.  74-5. 

Korean  influence,  33,  47, 
59,74,  77,  78,  81,  83, 
149,  223,  229,  248,  316, 
390,397,402,403,514. 

Korean  language,  274. 

"  Korean  wheel,"  33. 

Korschelt  (O.),  216. 

Kose-no-Kanaoka,  48, 54. 

"  Koshi  Den,"  288. 

Koto,  340,  341,  344. 

Koxinga,  187,  465. 

K5ya-san,  109,  369. 

Koyori,  373,  359. 

Koyo  Sanjin,  292. 

Kozaki  (Rev.  H.),  88. 

Kozuke,  30. 

Kublai  Khan,  233. 

Kudan,  39,  168,  171. 

Kttge,  356 ;  112. 

Kujira-jaku,  499. 

Kumehachi,  467. 

Kumi-ai  churches,  330. 

Kunisada,  51. 

Kure,  350. 

Kurile  Islands,  208 ;  28, 
74,  99,  128,  130,  211, 
343- 

Kuroda  (Count),  158. 

Kuroiwa  (S.),  293. 

Ktiro-shio,  210;  21,  99. 

Kusatsu,  319. 

Kwannon,  135,  359,  370. 

Kwanto,  211. 

Kzvazoku,  356. 

Kyosai,  51,  53. 

Kyoto,  81  ;  63,  90,  98, 
100,  101,  in,  113, 132, 
136,  137,  148,  150,  156, 
164,  190,  194,  209,  210, 
215,  218,  233,  234,  236, 
268,  269,  289,  315,  316, 


LEATHER-PAPER 

322,  323,  324,  328,  330, 
337,357,369,370,388, 

391,  394,403,4io,4H, 
449,  524. 
Kyushu,  208-9 ;  100, 210, 
212,  228-9,  325,  405. 


Labour,    248,    255,   297, 

298,  405. 
Lacquer,  270 ;  267,  497. 
Ladders   of  swords,   448 

-9- 
Ladies'  Patriotic  Society, 

434- 
Lagoons,  209 ;  127. 
Lake  Biwa,  358  ;  32,  172, 

194,  209,  406,  412. 
Lakes,  209,  444,  446. 
Land  of  the  Gods,  236, 

237. 

"  Landscape  Gardening 
in  Japan,"  208. 

Land  tax,  19,  218. 

Land  tenure,  19,  22,  150, 
284,  403,  493,  494- 

Lane-Poole  (S.),  363. 

Lange  (R.),  223,  348. 

Langegg  (Junker  von), 
69. 

Language,  274;  55-6, 
94,  153,  167,  194-5, 
247,  3H,  317-8,  329, 
339,352,365,368,369, 
402,  403,463,  5 *5,  519, 
521,  524. 

Language  (Aino),  24  ;  22, 

193- 
Language        (Luchuan), 

306  ;  274,  402-3,  483. 

Lantern  processions,  159. 

Lanterns,  162,  222,359. 

Lanterns  (feast  of),  162. 

Larks,  255,  439- 

Law,  278;  22,  132,  182, 
238,  240,  285,  309-12, 
353,451,480,489,490, 

496,  497,525. 
Lay  (A.  H.),  205. 
Leather-paper,  36c. 


LOWELL 

Leech  (J.H.),  71,  529. 
Legal   decisions,    496-7  ; 

301. 
Legends,  223,  et  seq.\  54, 

163,  174,194,207,247, 

402.  453,462. 
Legge  (Rev.  Dr.  J.),  104. 
Lepers'  homes,  327. 
Lepidoptera,  526,  527-8  ; 

71,  529- 
Lespedeza,  174,  358,  441. 
Letters  (correspondence), 

141-2,  183-4,355,360, 

384,394,481. 
Letters  (syllabaries),  517 

—8. 
Liao-tung,  220,  241. 
"  Liberal  churches,"  331. 
Libraries,  296,  396. 
Lighthouses,  188,  362. 
Lilies,  174,  207,  255,  305, 

430,  446- 
Lions,  54,  113. 
Literary  frauds,  186,  231. 
Literary  party,  235,  237, 

421. 
Literature,  284;  374  ;  62, 

66,    102-3,    132,    154, 

197,  223,  230,  232,  235, 

256,  258,  259,  351,  366 

-8,421,422,  423,  463, 

467-8,  502. 
Little  spring,  296. 
Living  (cost  of),  296 ;  21, 

124-5,  156,249. 
Lloyd  (Rev.  A.),  78,  79; 

68,  381. 
Lobsters,  160,  528. 
Local   government,    217, 

240,  280, 496. 
Lock  hospitals,  362. 
Longevity,  54,  251. 
Logic  (oriental),  300. 
Long-tailed   fowls,    304; 

526. 
Lbnholm  (Dr.  L.),  7 1 ,  284. 
Loti  (Pierre),  69, 126, 137, 

257-8. 
Lotuses,  305  ;  174. 
Lovers,    222,    310,    313 

375,433,440,442,464. 
Lowell  (Percival),  66,  82, 


Index. 


543 


LOYALTY 

MF.TIIODISTS 

MITFORD 

%l,   84,    l68,    169,    170, 

Marco  Polo,  249,  266. 

Mexico,  491,  424. 

257,  264, 372, 423,  449- 

Marionettes,  464. 

Mi-ai,  310. 

Loyalty,  8,  89,  165,  219, 

Marnas  (Father),  334. 

Middlemen,  310-11,  503. 

263,  410. 

Marriage,  309;    iS,  118, 

Miei-d5,  156. 

Luchu  Islands,  306  ;  16, 

433,  442,  502. 

Mikado,  317;  216-7,  226 

59,   74,  99>    100,  185, 

Martin  (Felix),  87. 

-9  ;  13,  14,  29,  30,  32, 

208,  228,  239,  274,  326, 

Maru,  314. 

34,  42,  80,  81,  94,  108, 

342,  364,  402-3. 

Mason  (W.B.),  Pre/.,  211. 

in,  112,149,159,163, 

Luck,  445  ;  85,  86,  455. 

Massage,  315  ;  14. 

214,  230,231,232,234, 

Luck  (Gods  of),  308  555, 

Masujima  (R.),  278,  284. 

235,237,257,346,349, 

87,  162. 

Materialism,  261,  409. 

356,410,415,419,421, 

Lustrations,  see  Purifica- 

Mats, 35,  168,  269,  299, 

422,  427,483,  513,  and 

tion. 

458,  499- 

see  Emperor  and  Em- 

Lyman (B.S.),  443. 

Matsukata  (Count),  94. 

perors. 

Lyric  drama,  462-3, 468 ; 

Matsumae,  522. 

"Mikado's  Empire,"  64; 

196,  197,233,289,204, 

Matsumura  (Prof.  J.),  59, 

26. 

376. 

60. 

Mikami  (S.),  293. 

Matting,  40,  299. 

Militarism,    42,    45,    46, 

Maximowicz  (C.  J.),   73, 

133,  329- 

M 

74- 

Military  Virtues  Society, 

Mayors    of    the    Palace, 

434- 

Mabuchi  (Kamo-no),  287, 

427 ;  233. 

Milk,  180. 

421. 

Mayn-dama,  478. 

Milky  way,  442. 

Mackay  (Rev.  Dr.),  188. 

McClatchie  (T.R.H.),  41, 

Millionaires,     300 ;     j  27, 

"  Madame       Chrysanthe- 

83,  112,223,  417,  449, 

435. 

me"  69,  257. 

467. 

Milne    (Prof.  J.),    Pre/., 

Maejima  (Baron),  394. 

Meacham    (Rev.  G.  M.), 

129-130  ;  28,  195,  212. 

Maga-tama,  34. 

262. 

Minamoto   family,    232; 

Magazines,  352. 

Meat-eating,  1 77, 1 78, 1 80, 

217,348,456. 

Magic  animals,   115;  85, 

238,  247,  269,  337,  500. 

Minamoto-no  -  Sanetomo, 

443-4-. 

Medals,  114  ;  87. 

456. 

Magic  mirrors,  321. 

Medicine,  14,  21,78,  131, 

Mineral  springs,  319  ;  61 

Magic  swords,  227,  22S, 

132,  154,  161,  182,268, 

-2;  57- 

447- 

339.  3S8,366,429,526. 

Mines,    212 ;    183,    187, 

Main  Island,  208,  et  pass. 

Meiji,  479;  44,3*9- 

280. 

"  Makitra  no  Soshi"  286. 

"  Meisho  Ztie^  288. 

Ministries,  218. 

294. 

"  Memoirs  of  the  Imperi- 

Minobu, 117. 

Malaria,  268. 

al  University,"  25,34, 

Mint,  110,  182,238. 

Malay  influence,  403. 

72,415. 

Miquel  (Fr.  A.W\),  76. 

Mammals,  526. 

Mencius,  102. 

Miracles,    66,    169,    170, 

Mandara,  135. 

Mendez  Pinto,  266. 

171. 

Manila,    324,    34°,    342, 

Merchants  (foreign),  261, 

Mir  in,  415. 

424. 

302,  487,  496. 

Mirrors,  321  ;  34,  84,  194. 

Manufactures,  248  ;  298, 

Merchants       (Japanese), 

Misasagi,  29-33. 

432"3' 

485, 487 ;  302. 

Miscegenation,    22,    150, 

Manure,  20. 

Mermaids,  444. 

402. 

Manuscripts,  397,  421. 

Metal- work,  316;  29,  34, 

Miscellanies        (literary), 

"Man-y5shu,"  284;  378, 

42,  85,   101,   102,  254, 

2S6. 

397,  294. 

321,  372,  373,  447- 

Missionaries,  322  ;  67,  73, 

Maple-trees,  81,  96,  174, 

Meteorology,      97,     100, 

133,  151,186,188,262. 

296. 

128. 

Missions,  323. 

Maps,  309  ;  429-30. 

Methodists,  330. 

Mitford  (A.B.),  66;   60, 

544 


Index. 


MITO 

63,  150,  155,    191,   222, 
417- 

Mito  (Prince  of),  235, 
285. 

Mitsubishi  Mail  Steam- 
ship Company,  425. 

Mitsui  (house  of),  486. 

Mitsii-mata,  360. 

Miura  (Dr.),  270. 

Miwa  (god  of),  226-7. 

Miyajima,  369. 

Miyanoshita,     319 ;     98, 

3°9,  443- 
Mnemonics,  381. 
Mochi,  160,  441. 
Mohl  (O.  von),  45,  319. 
"  Moji  no  Shirube,"  522. 
Molluscs,  528. 
Money,  109,  147. 
Money  lenders,  315. 
Mongol  invasion,  233. 
Mongols,  2^0;  233,  274, 

401,  402,  403. 
Monier  Williams  (Sir  M.), 

305. 
Monkeys,  526;   50,  230, 

476,  523. 
Monks     (Buddhist),     78, 

207,  254,  286. 
Monks    (Christian),    234, 

322,324,327- 
Mono-g atari,    286  ;    285, 

294-5. 
Monopolies,  146,  480, 486, 

493- 
Months,  476. 
Monto  sect,   78,    79,  80, 

410. 
Moon,  440;  55,  104,  121, 

I56;    173,    375,    379, 

476. 
Moon-God,  224,  440. 
Moral  maxims,  335  ;  165, 

502. 
Moralists,  102,  288,  502. 
Morality,    165,  312,  313, 

419. 
Mori  (Viscount),  220. 
Moronobu    (Hishigawa), 

509,  51  r. 
Morrison  (Mount),  187. 
Morse   (Prof.   E.S.),   72; 


NAGASAKI 
27,  28,  34,  41,  393. 

Mosaic,  101. 
Mosquitoes,     528;      153, 

165,105. 
Mothers-in-law,  312,  and 

see  p.  502  et  sea. 
Moths,  526,  431. 
Motoori  (Norinaga),  287  ; 

89,  I49»42i. 
Mountains,   209;   19,  61, 

70,  87,98,99,  187,  191, 

370,  380,  404,  446. 
Mountain  whale,  177. 
Mount  Morrison,  187. 
Mourning,  337  ;  310-1 1. 
Moxa,  339;  14,  3 '5- 
Mukojima,  82,  90. 
Mulberry-trees,  180,431  ; 

360,  432. 
Miiller  (Dr.),  341,344. 
Mtiller  (Max),  296. 
Munro   (Dr.  N.  G.),    71, 

ill. 
Munzinger      (Rev.     C), 

256,  264,  278,  335. 
Murai  Gensai,  292. 
Murasaki  Shikibu,    295  ; 

286. 
Murata  rifle,  45. 
Murdoch  (J.),  Pre/.,  67, 

243  ;  334,  430, 488. 
Murray  (Dr.  David),  243. 
Murray's        "  Handbook 

for  Japan,"  39,  79,  83, 

86,  156,  161,  172,  195, 

321,396,423,468,479, 

524. 
Museums,  30,  33,  82,  83, 

393,  43°,  448. 
Music,  339;  71,  132,  147- 

8,  205,  254,  338,  433, 

462,  464,  466. 
Mystic  numbers,  224. 
Mythic  beasts,  442. 
Mythology,  223  ;  55,  60, 

112,  173,418,440. 


N 

Nagasaki,    15,     16,    131, 
153,  154,212,239,266, 


319,325,327,389,424, 

429,455,486,489. 
Nagata  Hosei,  193. 
JVaga-tcta,  374. 
Nagoya,  101,  389. 
Nagoya  Sanza,  464. 
Nails,  58. 
Naito  Chiso,  293. 
Nakamura  Kei-u,  293. 
Nakasendo,  411,  248, 404. 
Nakodo,  310. 
Namazu,  444. 
Naines,    344;    247,   249, 

3»4,  39i,   392,   407-8, 

4i8,447,478-9,5H. 
Names  altered,  347;  81, 

416. 
Names  of  Japan,  249. 
Names  of  railways,  407 

-8. 
Namikawa,  100. 
Nanjio  (Bunyiu),  73. 
Nana-kusa,  357—8  ;   160. 
Nara,  81  ;  29,  31,  83,  1 12, 

316,393,524. 
Narita,  87. 
Naruto  channel,  210. 
National  anthem,  343. 
Naturalisation,  18,  334. 
Naumann  (Dr.  E.),  212. 
Navy,  348;  94,  132,  J  82, 

183,  184,242,269,314, 

353,  381. 
Needlework,  135,  482. 
Neeshima  (J.H.),  335. 
Nelumbium,  305. 
Nengo,  478. 

ATetsuke,  84,  373  ;  52,  54. 
Netto  (C),   69;    26,   56, 

212,  444. 
Newspapers,    351  ;     113, 

158,  184,  291,  331,  360, 

367,397,494,495,525. 
New  Year,   160;  25,  63, 

159,  308,476,485. 

" Nichi-Nichi  Shimbun" 

352;  >i8. 
Nichiren  sect,  78,  79,  1 16, 

117. 
Nicknames,  346,  451. 
Nicolai  (Bishop),  332. 
Nietsche,  159,  365. 


Index. 


545 


NIGHTINGALE 

OKINAWA 

OXEN 

Nightingales,    526;      55, 

Courts,  233  ;  13. 

Okuma     (Count),      133, 

2S5,  439- 

"  North  Star  and  South- 

221, 492. 

"Nightless  City   (The)," 

ern  Cross,"  70. 

O-Kuni,  464. 

526. 

Noto,  210. 

Okyo,  50,  346. 

Nihon,  249. 

Nouveaux  riches,  300. 

Old   age,    14,    125,    227, 

Nihon-bashi,  524. 

Novels,  285-6,  289,  291 

229,  251. 

"  Nihongi,"  284  ;  34,  223, 

-2;  70,  150,  191",  295, 

Old    Japan,     4,    6,  7,  8, 

227,229,230,  243,285, 

352. 

51,   66,   95,    150,   167, 

397,  420. 

Nudity,  60,  123-4,  451. 

19  J,  235,245,281,364, 

"Nikon  Gwaishi"  285. 

Numata,  171. 

393-462,466,474,476. 

Nihon  Kirisuto  Kyokwai, 

Numbers,  173,  224,357, 

"  Old  Japan  "  (porcelain), 

330- 

445- 

391. 

Ni-hyaku  toka,  tfj. 

Numerical        categories, 

Oligarchical  rule,  218. 

Niitaka-yama,  187. 

357;  20;  160,341,378, 

Omori  mounds,  27. 

"  Ni-  jit  -  ichi  Dai  Shu," 

506. 

M  Onna  Daigaku"  502. 

37«: 

Nuns  (Buddhist),  78,  135, 

Oni,  443. 

Ni-ju-sJd  Ko,  165. 

156,  464. 

Ono  Azusa,  293. 

Nikko,  35,  83,  84,  98,  159, 

Nuns  (Christian),  327. 

Ontake,  370;  168,  209. 

210,  319. 

Nyiibai,  96,  477. 

Ooka,  167,  289-90. 

Ninagawa,  34. 

Opening    of  Japan,    see 

Ninsei,  391. 

Japan  Opened. 

Nintoku  (Emperor),  229  ; 

O 

Opening    of    mountains, 

31,431- 

98. 

Ni-o,  117. 

Oaths,  276,  283. 

Opening  of  rivers,  162. 

Nippold  (Dr.  O.),  69. 

Obi,  124. 

Open    ports,    489  ;    357  ; 

Nippon,  249. 

"  Occult  Japan,"  66,  168, 

236,  302,  354,  364,^394, 

"  Nippon  Archiv"   429, 

257,  372,  423,  449- 

491. 

431- 

Ochiai  Naobumi,  293. 

Oranges,    75,    160,    180, 

Nippon  Yusen  Kwaisha, 

October,  162-3. 

228,  486. 

425- 

Octopus,  444. 

Orchids,  174. 

Nirvana,  77,  159,473- 

Oda  Nobunaga,  151,238, 

Orders     of    knighthood, 

Nishigawa        Sukenobu, 

458. 

114,239. 

5". 

Odes  (miniature),  374. 

Origin   of  the  Japanese, 

Nishi  Hongvvanji,  410. 

Officialdom,  218 ;  95,  125, 

401. 

Nishiki-e,  510. 

158,  182,  188,219,232, 

Ornamentation,  see  Dec- 

Nishino Buntaro,  220. 

238,  241,  300,  345,  366, 

orative  Art. 

Nitol>e   (Inazo),   72,    73, 

389,404,419,435,437, 

Ornaments  (personal),  34, 

417. 

474,  497- 

124,  373- 

No,  463,  467;   25,    196, 

Officials     (how    classed), 

Orthodox    Russian 

197,289,376,382,465, 

282. 

_  Church,  332. 

468. 

Ogawa's    collotypes,    72, 

Osaka,  388  ;  44,  no,  148, 

Nobility,  355;   in  ;  95; 

195,512. 

150,  210,  218,248,  316, 

31,  127,  132,  136,  217, 

Ogres,  443. 

327,328,357,366,394, 

239,  248,  250,  268,  337, 

Ogyu  Sorai,  103. 

_  403,  406,  486,  489. 

402. 

Ohara  Takeyoshi,  219. 

Osaka  Shcsen    Kwaisha, 

Nobunaga,  151,  234,  458. 

Oil-paper,  359. 

_  426. 

Nodding  stones,  207. 

Ojin     (Emperor),      229 ; 

Oshu  Kaido,  411. 

Noguchi  (Y.),  73. 

-3°-  . 

Otsu-e,  50. 

Nori-mono,  267. 

O-jisfun,  238. 

Otsuki  Fumihiko,  293. 

Norito,  288,  420. 

Okakura  (K.),  73. 

Oura  (Mrs.),  455. 

Norman  (Henry), 183. 

Oki  Islands,  74,  120,  208. 

Owari,  107,  148,  391. 

Northern   and    Southern 

Okinawa,  306. 

Oxen,  203. 

546 


Index. 


OYAMA 


Oyama  (Marquis),  94. 
Qzaki  (Miss),  155. 


Paddy-fields,  20. 

Pages   (Leon),    62.    334, 

335- 
Painting,  see  Art. 
Palaces,  39,81,  100,  112, 

175,196,380,458,459. 
Palanquins,  267. 
Pale  (John),  440. 
Pal  grave  (Gi  fiord),  252. 
Palmer  (Major-General), 

27,  105. 
Paper,  359;  35,  69,  156, 

272,  298,  373-4,   509, 

510,  528. 
Paper  charms,  87,  509. 
Paper  fishes,  93,  161. 
Paper  mills,  183. 
Paper  money,   109,110. 
Paper     mulberry,     360, 

43i- 
Paper  offerings,  423. 
"  Papier schmetterknge 

aits   Japan"   69;    26, 

212. 
Papinot   (Abbe   E.),    69, 

211. 
Paragons   of  filial   piety, 

165,357. 
Pariahs,  149,  119. 
Parker  (E.  H.),  148. 
Parkes  (Lady),  194. 
Parkes  (Sir  Harry),  360; 

349- 
Parks,    81,  S2,    90,  127, 

205,  439- 
Parlett  (H.  G.),  278. 
Parliament,  see  Diet. 
Parsons  (Alfred),  69. 
Parties    (political),    218; 

I33»  240. 
Parties  (social),  25,   158, 

I63.438,457- 
Patents    (substitute  for), 

,->  I4-7' 

Patriotism,   89;   47,  114, 

240,  261. 


PILLOW-WORDS 

Patterns,  33,  52,  53,  55, 

136,  396. 
Paulownia,  222. 
Paulownia     (Order     of), 

114. 
Payment    in  instalments, 

Peace  Preservation   Act, 

239- 
Pearson  (G.  C.),  68. 
Peasantry,  19,  22,  42,  95, 

124, 188,  250,  268,  300, 

402, 423,  474,  477,  5o8, 
Peking  (relief  of),  43,  241. 
Peninsulas,  210. 
Tensions,    18,    105,    112, 

238. 
Peonies,     54,    174,    222, 

430. 
Perfumes,  245,  457- 
Perry  (Commodore),  363; 

50,  235,  236,  237,  430, 

488. 
Perry  (Prof.  J.),  321. 
Persecutions,   325  ;      67, 

15',  153*238,332. 
Persian  influence,  47. 
Personal  names,  345,  347, 

506. 
Personification        (rarity 

of),  276. 
Pescadores,  209. 
Petroleum,  298. 
Pheasants,  526,  529;  523 

et  pass. 
Phenix,  444. 
Philosophy,  365  ;  88,  102, 

103,  176,254,258,  460. 
Photography,    446;     58, 

136,  238,512. 
Pickles,  22,  179,  181,  298. 
Picnics,  25,  159. 
"  Pictorial  Arts  of  Japan," 
56,  71,  270. 
Pictures,    270;    87,   509 

seq.  and  see  Art. 
Pidgin-Japanese,  368. 
Piggott  (F.T.),  71,   177, 

341,  343,  344- 
Pilgrims,   369;    87,    195, 

405,  478. 
Pillow-words,   376,  471. 


TOSTHUMOUS  HONOURS 

Pine-trees,  54,  160,  206. 
Pipes,  372;  57,  123,480. 
Pirates,    186,    187,    239, 

348,  424,  465- 
Pit-dwellings,  28. 
Pivots  (in  poetry),  376. 
Place-names,  22,  192,  210 

-",345,347- 
Plays,    467;      198,    468, 

and  see  Drama. 
Plum-blossom,    174;    54, 

55,  104,  159,  173,  255. 
Poetic  tournaments,   376 

-7- 

Poetry,  374;  25,  46,  66, 
73,  75.  78,  79,  89,  102, 
105, 122,  128, 143,  144, 
160,  191,192, 196,  198, 
235,  250,  276-7,  284, 
285,  292,  294,  296,  308, 
3i7,  357-8,  359,  441, 
462,  468,  517. 

Poets,     374-6,  378;    25, 

l6o,  IQI,  I92,  292,  44I, 
472. 

Poison  (lacquer),  274. 
Police,   280;    60,   145-6, 

281,446,513,525,  526. 
Political  parties,  218  ;  94, 

133,  240. 
Politics  (modem),  67,  218, 

354,  49 1- 

Polo,  384. 

Pope  (Japanese  received 
by  the),  325. 

Fopular  school  of  paint- 
ers,  49-51,56. 

Population,  388 ;  23,150, 

307. 
Porcelain,  290;  6,  67,  81, 

101,  148. 
Port  Arthur,  43. 
Portuguese  in  Japan,  151 

-3;     16,   42,   67,    155, 

186,234,235,322,323, 

324, 480, 485, 488, 
Possession  (by  foxes,  etc.), 

115;  66,85. 
Postage  stamps,   394-5  ; 

158. 
Posthumous  honours,  346 

-7;  105,  221. 


Index. 


547 


POSTHUMOUS   NAMES 

REGENTS 

RIVERS 

Posthumous    names,  346 

Puns,  197,  198. 

Reiheishi  Kaido,  411. 

-7 ;  226,  345- 

Puppet  emperors,  13, 232. 

Rein   (Dr.  J.  J.),  68;  22, 

Posts,    393;      183,    238, 

Pure  Shinto,  421,  423. 

73.  74,  75.  76,  80,  211, 

300-1. 

Purification  (by  water  or 

242,274,317,360,401, 

Potter's  wheel,  33. 

fire),  60,  170,  224,  311, 

43°,  433, 448, 449,  455, 

Pottery,  390;  28,  31,  33, 

419. 

527,528,529. 

67,81. 

Purification    of    temples, 

Relics,  371. 

Prayers,  370,  395,  506. 

422,  423,  483. 

Religion,   408;    76,   322, 

Praying- wheel,  395. 

418-9;   8,  23,  32,  86, 

Prefectures,     218;     210, 

247,253,254,256,  259, 

211. 

Q 

275,309,316,318,365, 

Prehistoric  pottery,  33. 

37o,  457- 

Presbyterians,  329-30. 

Quasi-Shinto    sects,    422 

Religion  (Amo),  23. 

Presents,    160,    162,  310, 

-3- 

Religious  Tract  Societies, 

457- 

Queues,  123,  238,  410. 

33i- 

Press-laws,  353-4. 

Quin  (J.  J.),  274. 

Remmon-kyo,  422. 

Prices,  298-9  ;  124,  157. 

Rennyo  Shonin,  381. 

Priestesses,  420. 

Reptiles,  527. 

Priests    (Buddhist),    420 

R 

Republic  set  up,  237. 

-1;    48,  76,   79.   "6, 

Restoration   of  Mikados, 

122,131,156,  168,  198, 

Rabbits,  157. 

237,   and   see  Revolu- 

204,245, 409,  456, 458, 

Race,  401 ;  250 ;   22,  28, 

tion. 

462, 480. 

303- 

"  Resume    Stalistique  de 

Priests    (Christian),    327 

Races    (movements    of), 

r Empire  du    Japan" 

-8 ;  322,  324,  424. 

22,  28,  401-2. 

72,  390. 

Priests  (Shinto),  420 ;  86, 

Radicals  (in  politics),  239; 

Revenue,  19. 

120,  169,  170,  204,  337, 

94,  125,  135,  49',  493- 

Revival  of  learning,  235, 

37i. 

Radicals  (of  ideographs), 

421,397- 

Prince  of  Wales,  451. 

3^,514. 

Revival   of  pure  Shinto, 

Princes    (Imperial),     45, 

Radishes,  179,  222,  298. 

421,423. 

395- 

Rail  ways,  403  ;  115,  1^8, 

Revolution  (of  1868),  236 

Printing,  396  ;  509. 

183,  188,238,269,381, 

-8;  8,  42,  66,  94,  95, 

Prison  editors,  354. 

498. 

112,131,307,349,353, 

Prisons,   280:    183,    269, 

Rain,   96-roo;    37,    124, 

422,427,464,465,483. 

354. 

180. 

Revolving  libraries,  396. 

Processions,      164,      197, 

Rainy  season,  96,  477. 

Rhyme,  375,  292. 

205,  267. 

Ramma,  35. 

Rhys  Davids,  79. 

Prosody,  374. 

Rank  (official),  282. 

Rice,  20,  21,  22,  62,  160 

Prostitution,  524 ;  390. 

Rathgen    (Dr.    K.),    72; 

-2,    177-9,    l8o>   247, 

Protestant  missions,  328  ; 

22. 

268,  269, 306,  307,  416, 

133,333.335- 

Rats,  54. 

477-8,  4S6,  499. 

Proverbs,  399  ;    89,    271, 

Reaction,  239 ;  333  ;  26, 

Rice-beer,  415. 

320,  383,  445,  525. 

126,158,219,354,492, 

Rice-cakes,  160,  441. 

Provinces,  218  ;  210,  211. 

493- 

Riess(Dr.  L.),43i. 

Pryer  (H.),  6S,  529. 

"Real  Japan,"  70,  183. 

Rising    Sun,    172,     173; 

Psalmanazar       (George), 

Rebellions,  238-9. 

114,472. 

186. 

Red  Cross,  434  ;  137,292. 

Ritter  (Pastor  H.).  335. 

Pseudonyms,  346  ;  51. 

Red  Cross  Hospital,  137. 

Rituals  (Shinto),  288, 420; 

Public  bathing,  60. 

Redesdale     (Lord),     see 

39- 

Pug-dogs,  400. 

Mitford. 

River  (opening  of),  162. 

Punishments,    280,    339, 

Regalia,  420. 

Rivers,    209;      81,    105, 

353-4,  446. 

Regents,  233  ;  81,  234. 

162,     192,     404,    406, 

543 


Index. 


ROADS 

SCHEUBE 

SHAKA   MUNI 

442,  444. 

Tea-Drinking,"  456. 

Schoolbooks,  244. 

Roads,    411;     188,    248, 

Salutations,  415. 

Schools,  13 1-5  :  227-31  ; 

268,  269. 

Salvation     Army,      331, 

44.   47,   76,  269,  367, 

Rohan,  292,  343. 

525. 

513. 

Schools  of  art,  47-5 1,510. 

Rohkon  Shdjd,  370. 

Salwey  (Mrs.),  157. 

Rokuro-kiibi,  443. 

Samba,  2S9. 

Schopenhauer,  159. 

Romaji  Kwai,  521. 

Samisen,  340;   1 13,  341, 

Scidmore  (Miss  E.R.),  69. 

Romances  (classical), 

342,  344- 

Screens,  35,  48,  359. 

285;  294. 

Sampan,  413. 

Scriba  (Dr.  J.),  269. 

Romanisation     of    Japa- 

Samura, 62. 

Scriptures        (Buddhist), 

nese,  521. 

Samurai,  415  ;  8,  42,  46, 

79;  73.77- 

"  Romanised  Japanese 

72,   95,  219,  222,  237, 

Scriptures        (Christian), 

Reader,"  222. 

337, 447,  448, 499. 

329;  152. 

Romantic      stories,      84, 

Samtirai  Odori,  388. 

Scrolls     (painted),     270 ; 

148. 

Sandals,  1 23  ;  45,  58,  298. 

196. 

Ram  tt,  189-91. 

Sanetomo,  456. 

Sculpture,  see  Carving. 

Roofs,  34,  35,  38-9,  207. 

San-ga-nichi,  160. 

Sea  of  Japan,    99,   209, 

Rowing,  412. 

San-ko-nin,  283. 

357- 

Russia    (relations    with), 

San-indo,  21 1. 

Sea-bathing,  62. 

43,  44,  208,  220,  236, 

Sanno,  164. 

Seals,  520;   58,   71,  283, 

241,  242,  265,  523. 

Sannomiya      (Baroness), 

284. 

Russian  Church  (Ortho- 

205. 

Seasons,  476  ;  98,  478. 

dox),  332. 

Sans  an  ku-do,  311. 

Sects  (Buddhist),  78,  79, 

Russo-Japanese   war   (of 

Sanyodo,  211. 

80. 

19°4),  43.  44,  242,  351, 

Sanyo  Tetsudo,  404,  405. 

Sects  (Christian),  322. 

355,  484- 

Sapporo,  523 ;  132. 

Sects  (Shinto),  422. 

"  Ryoko  Annai"  408. 

Sarcophagi,  31. 

Sei  Shonagon,  286. 

Ryobu  Shinto,  421,  422. 

Sargent  (C.S.),  76. 

Seismological        Society, 

Ryukyu,  306. 

Saris  (Capt),  16. 

129,  130;  128. 

Sasaki  Nobutsuna,  292. 

Self-government,      240, 

Sashes,  124. 

280. 

s 

Sat-Cho,  94,  217,  237. 

Semi-maru,  1 47-8. 

Sato-gaeri,  311. 

Sengen,  194. 

"  Sacred    Books    of    the 

Satow   (Sir   Ernest),   30, 

Sen  no  Rikyu,  459,  460. 

East,"  104,  122. 

34,  37,  40,  59,  60,  62, 

Sennin,  443. 

Sacred  pictures,  86. 

68,  76,  278,  285,  290, 

Senses  (the  six),  370. 

Sacred  trees,  80. 

294,318,335,399,423, 

Servants,  382  ;    160,  298- 

Sada  Yakko,  467. 

431,  480. 

9,  506-7. 

Sado,  208. 

Satsuma   porcelain,   391, 

Sesshu,  49. 

Sages  (Chinese),  102. 

392- 

Seio-mono,  391. 

Saghalien,  208 ;  74,  209. 

Satsuma    (province    and 

Seven  Gods  of  Luck,  308. 

Saigo,  239 ;  187. 

clan),  94, 132,217,223, 

Seven  herbs  of  autumn, 

Saikyo,  81. 

234,  236,  237,  307,  324, 

358 ;  104,  160. 

Sailors,  348  ;  269,  424. 

480. 

Seven  Isles  of  Izu,  196. 

Saitama         insurrection, 

Satsuma   rebellion,  239 ; 

Severini  (A.),  164. 

239- 

43,  "4,425,439. 

Sexagenary   cycle,    477 ; 

Sakamoto  (Mr.),  422. 

Saturday,  475. 

62. 

Sake,  415;  63,  161,  178, 

Savatier  (L.),  73,  76. 

Sexes  (relations  between 

299,  441. 

Scale  (musical),  341^2. 

the),  500  et  sea.;  60,  61. 

Salamanders,  526,  527. 

Scenery,  20,  72,  73,  357, 

Seymour  (Dr.  J.N. ),  41. 

vSalt,  169,  170,  171. 

358>  439,  45o. 

"  Shadowings,"  348. 

"  Salutary    Influence    of 

Scheube  (Dr.  B.),  270. 

Shaka  Muni,  77. 

lndt\ 


549 


SHAMISEN 

Shamisen,  340;  1 13,  341, 
342,  344- 

Shampooers,  316,  159. 

SJiari,  371. 

Shaving,  93,  163. 

Shell-heaps  of  Omori,  27 
-8. 

Shiba,  35,  82,  83,  84,  90. 

Shiba  Kokan,  512. 

Shibata  Zeshin,  274. 

Shidachi  (T.),  514. 

Shigeno  An-eki,  17,  243. 

Shigenobu,  51. 

Shijo  school  of  painters, 
5o. 

Shikoku  (island  of),  100, 
208-9,  210,211,  et  pas- 
sim. 

Shimada  Saburo,  293, 
,352. 

Shimamura  (Dr.),  119. 

Shimazu  family,  222. 

Shimo-bashira,  417. 

Shimoda  opened,  364. 

Shimonoseki  affair,  236. 

Shinano-Hida  mountains, 
209. 

Shin  sect,  78,  79,  80. 

Shingakusha,  288. 

Shingon  sect,  78,  79,  396. 

Shinju,  221. 

Shinno,  458. 

Shinto,  418;  60,  77,  78, 
79,  108,  120,  159,  163, 
204,  220,  230,  235,  237, 
247,  288,  296,  308,  340, 
371,408,409,471,478, 
482. 

Shipping,  424;  348,314- 

Ships  (names  of),  314. 

Shirane-san,  320 ;  209. 

Shiro-zake,  161. 

Shizoku,  95,  416. 

Shoguns,  427 ;  232-7 ; 
42,46,81,82,131,  153, 
189,  196,  215,222,243, 
266,285,348,361,393, 
421,424,456,497,522. 

Shoji,  35. 

Shoji  Jin-emon,  524. 

Shojo,  443. 


SOCIETY 

Shokonsha,    39,    82,    85, 

448. 
Shonzui,  391. 
Shooting,  428. 
"  Shosei  Katagi"  29 1 . 
Shotoku  (Empress),  396. 
Shotoku  Taishi,  78,  372. 
Shrines  (branch),  370. 
Shubun,  49. 
Shunten  (King),  306. 
Shushi,  103. 
Siam,  16,  424. 
Sidotti  (Father),  326. 
Siebold  (P.F.  von),  429 ; 

73- 
Signature,  283,  520. 
Silent  concerts,  340. 
Silk,  431  ;   123,  136,  248, 

478. 
Silk  (painted),  j  36,  432. 
Silkworms,      527,     432 ; 

180. 
Silver,  212;  34,  102,  109, 

158,274,317.372,373. 
Simmons  (Dr.  D.B.),  22, 

150,  284,  402,  403. 
Simpson  (Wra,),  396. 
Singing-girls,    433 ;    86, 

340,343,346,381,438, 

457- 
Sinico-Japanese,  515-6. 
Six,  224. 
"  Sketches       of      Tokyo 

Life,"  69. 
Sliding-doors,  35,  36,  40. 
Small-pox,  362. 
Smells  (bad),  20,  83,  ios. 
Smith  (Rev.  A.H.),  264." 
Smithsonian        Institute, 

512. 
Smoking,  372,  480;  188. 
Snakes,  527 ;  40. 
Snow,  96-7;   55,  59,  99, 

124,  443,  522,  526. 
"  Social  Departure  (A)," 

70,  146. 
Societies,    434;     56,    57, 

133,  158,369,  521. 
Society,    435;    95,    104, 

279,  432,  5oo. 
Society     for     Promoting 
Christian    Knowledge, 


79,  104. 
Society  of  Friends,  331. 
Soga-no-Iname,  77. 
Soldiers,  42,  94,  188,  241, 

415- 

Solfatara,  209. 
Solstices,  160,  161. 
Songs,  464,  46,  381,  440. 
"  Songs      Ancient       and 

Modern,"  378,  294. 
Sorcery,  85-6,  115,  122. 
Soroban,  1 1. 
Sosen,  50. 
Sdshi,  135. 
"Soul  of  the  Far  East," 

66,  264. 
Soup,  178,  179,  181,  272, 

358. 
Soy,  1 78-9,  297. 
Spanish    influence,    151, 

153,  185,234,235,324, 

325,342,424,488. 
Sparrows,  54. 
Spas,  319,  61. 
Spears,  34. 
"  Spectator,"  5,  257. 
Speculations,  157,  158. 
Spencer   (Herbert),   365, 

366. 
Spies,  196. 

Spinsters  (rarity  of),  313. 
Spirits  (beverage),  415. 
Spirits  (ghosts),  162. 
Sponge-cake,  153. 
Sponges,  528. 
Sport,  428,  171  ;  126. 
Sports,  25,  26,  126,  133, 

146,  171,384- 
Stage  (revolving),  465. 
Stamps  (postage),  394-5  ; 

158. 
Standard  of  living,  300. 
Staples  of  food,   20,    21, 

22. 
Stars,  440 ;  156. 
Statistics,  44,  60,  97,  132, 

133,  184,251,269,  297 

-9,313-4,327-32,335, 

35 !,  371,390,394,404, 

405,  432,  488,  525. 
Statues,  83,  84,  85,  117, 

158,  and  see  Carving. 


55° 


Ifidex. 


STEAMSHIPS 

TAXATION 

THREE  BIRD  SECRET 

Steamships,  425-6 ;    181, 

Swordsmiths,  163,  447. 

433,  486,  494,  497- 

238,  269. 

Syllabaries,  516-8;   398, 

Tea,  452  ;    75,  90,    161, 

Steichen  (Abb6),  334. 

247- 

178,179,  187,247,269, 

Stews,  160. 

Symbolism,      160,     305, 

299,  408. 

Stone  implements,  27,  38. 

3o8,  339,  482. 

Tea     ceremonies,     455 ; 

Stones,  31,  206,  207. 

196,233,245,391- 

Storehouses,  36. 

Tea-houses,  98,  299,  453, 

Story-tellers,    439 ;    346, 

T 

466. 

438. 

Tea-parties,  457,  458. 

Straits,  209,  523. 

Tabako-bon,  373. 

Teeth  (how   blackened), 

Strange  (E.F.),  512. 

Tablets,  347,  482-3. 

63. 

Straw,  45,  80,  123,  124, 

Tachibana         Moiikuni, 

Teika  Kyo,  378. 

160,  168. 

5"- 

"  Teikoku        Bungahu" 

Street-criers,  351. 

Taema-dera,  135. 

352. 

Strikes,  248,  282. 

Taguchi  Ukichi,  293. 

Telegraphs,     460 ;     164, 

Strolling    players,    464 ; 

Taiko,  234,  and  see  Hide- 

183,238,362,411. 

150. 
Students,    134;  131,132, 

yoshi. 

Telephones,    461  ;     164, 

Taira   family,   232,   217, 

509. 

133,  142,181,297,347- 

348,  439,  528. 

Temperance        societies, 

Suffrage,  217. 

Taiwan,  186. 

434- 

Sugar,  187,  299,  307. 

Takagi     (Surgeon-Gen.), 

Temple  (Confucian),  103. 

Suicide,    219,    220,   221, 

269,  270. 

Temples  (Buddhist),   37, 

222;    I59,45i- 

Takahashi  Goro,  293. 

81  ;  34,  35,  77-8,  82, 

Suiko  (Empress),  78,  229, 

Takara-bunc,  307. 

83,  109,  131,  135,  156, 

219. 

Takasago,  185. 

168,  192,  198,  220,  247, 

Suinin  (Emperor),  30. 

Takashima     (K.),      121, 

336,  369-370,  396,  409, 

Suisei  (Emperor),  227. 

122. 

410,422,423,443,445, 

Sujin  (Emperor),  227. 

Takatsu       Kuwasaburo, 

448,457,505,5i3- 

Sun,  440;   55,   156,  161, 

293- 

Temples  (Shinto)  38  ;  37, 

172,  173- 

Takeda  Izumo,  465. 

40,81,  82,84,87,  112, 

Sunday,  475. 

Takekoshi         Yosaburo, 

161,  163, 168, 170,225, 

Sun-goddess,  224-7  ;  1 12, 

293. 

227,  247,  369-370,  409, 

1 56,  233,369,420,440. 

"  Taketori Mo no-g atari" 

420,421,423,448,464, 

Supernatural     creatures, 

286. 

482,  505. 

442;  194. 

"  Toki  no  Koe"  331. 

Tempo,  479;  no,  133. 

Superstitions,  444;    121; 

"Tales   of    Old   Japan," 

Tendai  sect,  78,  396. 

27,3i»  32,  80,  85,  86, 

66;  63,  150,  155,  191, 

Tengu,  443. 

88,  93,  115,  125,   128, 

222,  417. 

Tenjiku  Hachibei,  424. 

158,  160,  161, 164,  168, 

Tamenaga         Shunshui, 

Tennirty  442. 

194,253,263,308,371 

289. 

Tenri-kyo,  422,  423. 

-2,  422,  462,  527,  528. 

Tametomo,  306. 

Tens  hi,  317. 

Surimono,  510. 

Tamura  (N.),  314;  72. 

"Ten  Wits,"  379. 

Surnames,  345 ;  94. 

Tanabata,  442 ;  162. 

Tera,  423. 

Susa-no-o,  224,  440. 

Tane-ga-shima,  151. 

Terracing,  19,  20,  454. 

Sutras,   73,    77,    79,   87, 

Tanka,  374. 

Thatch,  34,  35,   37,   38, 

131,247,517- 

Tansan  water,  497. 

4o,  423. 

Suzuki  Harunobu,  510. 

Tan-yu  (Kano),  49. 

Theatre,     462;    25,    82, 

Swearing,  276,  283. 

Taoism,  308,  421. 

112,  113,  150,  191,  196. 

Sweet  potato,  22,  444. 

Tariff,  493-4,  489. 

197,  300,310. 

Swords,  447  ;  27,  34, 123, 

Taste,  449  ;  235,  459. 

Thirty-three  Holy  Places, 

163,  168,  226,  314,3!  7, 

Tattooing,  450;  23. 

359,  37o. 

372,  457- 

Taxation,  218,  284,  371, 

Three  bird  secret,  149, 

Index. 


55 


THREE   TREE  SECRET 

Three  tree  secret,  149. 
Thunder,  99,  443. 
Tiger  (in  art),  55. 
Tiles,  34,  35,  247,  423. 
lime    (how    computed), 

474 ;  129. 

"  Times  "  newspaper,  70, 

105. 
Titles,  355;  111,317. 
Tobacco,  480,  500. 
Toba-e,  48. 
Toga-no-o,  453,  457. 
Tog5  (Admiral),  35 1 . 
Tokaido,  411;  195,  289, 

359,394,404. 

J  ononoma,  270. 

Tokugawa  dynasty,  234- 
6;  42,  82,  in,  131, 
217,222,243,293,348, 
424,  427. 

Tokuno  (M.),  512. 

Tokutomi  Iichiro,  293. 

Tokutomi  Roka,  292. 

Tokyo,  81,  82;  28,  30, 
33,41,  45,  SU  56,  60, 
62,  63,  83,  90,  96,  97, 
98,  99,  100,  101,  103, 
109,  no,  113,126, 127, 
132,  133,  I37>  157,  160, 
162,  164, 167, 168, 174, 
175,210,  218,220,230, 
238,  264,  282, 297, 298, 
307»327,  328, 33°,  33i, 
332,34o,349,35i,353, 
355,  357, 36f,  365,37i, 
388,  390, 393, 394, 396, 
403,412,428,437,438, 
44o,44i,448,449,46o, 
466,491,513. 

Tombs,  29-33,  82. 

Tomkinson  (M.),  56,  85. 

Tonegawa,  171. 

Topography,  287. 

Topsy  -  turvydom,  480 ; 
86,  136,  160,  475. 

Torii,  482 ;  423. 

Torii  school,  510,  51 1. 

Torpedo  schools,  350. 

Tortoises,  527. 

Tortoise-shell,  124. 

Torture,  182,  238,  282. 

Tosa  (province  and  clan), 


21,  94,  217. 
"  Tosa  Niki,  287,  294. 
Tosa  painters,  48,  49. 
Tournaments       (poetic), 

376-7. 
Towels,  484 ;  54. 
Towns  (principal),  388-9. 
Toyo     Kisen    Kwaisha, 

426. 
Toyokuni,  51. 
Toys,  26,  58. 
Tracey       (Commander), 

349- 
Trade,  485  ;  21,  95,  162- 

3,  248,  302,  424,  432, 

455- 
"  Irade   Reports"  (Brit- 
ish), 72,  488. 
"  Transactions     of     the 

Asiatic       Society       of 

Japan,"    see    "Asiatic 

Transactions." 
Translations  of  European 

books,  290-1. 
Transmigration,  77,  395. 
Transmission    of  names, 

348. 
Transplanting  trees,  206. 
Travel  (books  of),  68-70, 

286. 
Travel  (season  for),  98. 
Trays,  58. 
Treasure  (order  of  the), 

114. 
Treaties,  488 ;  364,  495. 
Treaty  ports,  487;   354, 

357,  394- 
Treaty     revision,     488 ; 

239,  240,  333,  354- 
Trees,  74,  80,   160,   173, 

1 87,  206,  270,  360,  380, 

411. 
Troup  (James),  68,  80. 
Tsnbo,  499. 
Tsuboi  (Prof.  S.),  34. 
Tsubouchi     Yuz5,     291, 

293- 
Tsugaru  Strait,  209,  523. 
Tsurayuki,  287,  378. 
"  Tsure-zure-Gusa"  286. 
Tsushima,  208. 
Tuke  (S.),  483. 


Tumuli,  29-32,  83. 
Two  swords  (wearing  of), 

448. 
Tycoon,  497. 
Types  (printing),  397-8. 
Types  (racial),  402 ;  250. 
Typhoons,  99,   100,  306, 

406,  446,  478. 


u 

Uchimura    (Kanzo),    72, 

335. 
Ueno,  30,  33,  82,  83,  90, 

236,  267,  393. 
Uguisn,  526. 

Uji,  453,  454,  457- 

"  Uji  Shui"  115. 

Ukiyo-e  school  of  paint- 
ers, 49-51. 

"  Unbeaten  Tracks  in 
Japan,"  68 ;  25,  260. 

Unbusinesslikeness,  487 ; 
261,  302-3. 

Unicorn,  444. 

Uniforms  (military),  45  ; 
42. 

Unitarians,  331. 

Universalists,  331. 

Universities,  132;  72, 
115,  119,129,131,133, 
230,  282,  297. 

Uraga,  363. 

Usui-toge,  404. 

Utagawa  school  of  paint- 
ers, 510,  511. 

Uwabami,  527. 

Utilitarianism,  366-7. 


Vaccination,  362,  238. 
Vases,  33,    36,   58,    101, 

317,449.      _ 
Veeder  (Rev.  Dr.),  344. 
Vegetable  wax,  497. 
Vegetables,  22,  57,  177— 

81,187,255,431. 
Vegetation,  73. 
Velvet,  136,  154. 


552 


Judex. 


VENDETTA 

Vendetta,  189,  492. 
Venison,  177. 
Vermicelli,  161,  179. 
Views  fine,  357,  358. 
Visiting,  25,  179,  506. 
Voice,  341,344. 
Volcanoes,     127,    192-3, 

195,  209,  211,  319. 
Voters,  217. 


w 

Wada  (T.),  212. 
Wagener  (Dr.  G.).  417; 

56,  418,  444- 
Wages,  297  ;  249,  298. 
Wallace  (Alfred),  74. 
Wang  Yang  Ming,  365. 
War  correspondents,  355. 
War  fans,  156. 
War  songs,  46. 
Wars,  43,  232-4,  240-2, 

351. 

Wasan,  381,  288. 
Waseda  College,  132-3. 
Waterfalls,      210;      159, 

171. 

"  Way  of  the  Gods,"  418. 
Weaning  infants,  93. 
Weapons,  27,  34,  42,  45, 

447- 
Weddings,  309 ;  114,  395. 
Wednesday,  475. 
Weights    and    Measures, 

498  ;  88. 
Wei-hai-wei,  334. 
Wells  (sacred),  372. 
Wenckstern  (Fr.  von),  62, 

64. 
Weppner  (Miss  Margare- 

tha),  70. 
Wernich  (Dr.),  270. 
Weston     (Rev.    Walter), 

70.    ' 
Whaling,  172. 
"  Wheel    of    the    Law," 

396.' 
White,  310,  339,  432.   - 
Whitney  (Dr.  W.  N.),  14, 

316,  339. 
Wigmore   (Prof.  J.    H.), 


22,  68,  150,  284. 

Wild-flowers,  174,  439. 

Wills  (substitute  for),  17. 

Wind,  96-100;  36. 

Windows,  35,  40,  57. 

Wistarias,  174;  37,  82, 
104. 

Wizards,  118. 

Woman  (status  of),  500; 
26,  136,  196,  310,  311, 
336,416,436,464,482. 

Women,  500;  26,  6i, 
ico,  114,  116,  124,  125, 
132,  133,  J44,  163-4, 
220,  228-9,  251,  268, 
286,295,313,436,438, 
443,445,463,464,48o. 

Women's  names,  347. 

Wood-carving,  83. 

Wood  -  engraving,     509  ; 

249,  397. 
Working  hours,  248,  263. 
Worms,  161. 
Wrestling,   512;    25,  82, 

158,  168,  297. 
Writing,  514;  33. 
Written  language,  520-2; 

277,  283,  352. 


Xavier  (St.  Francis),  322; 

76,  253. 
Xylography,  509. 


Yamada  Nagamasa,  424. 

Yamagata  (Marquis),  94. 

Yania-mayu,  432. 

Yamamoto  (Baron),  94. 

Yamato  (province),  250 ; 
80,  81,  90,  135,  226-9, 
369,  402. 

Yamato  (school  of  paint- 
ing), 48. 

Yamato-meguri ',  369. 

Yamato-take,  2287-230. 

Yano  Fumio,  291. 

Yashiki,  41,  83.  a 

Yas/iiro,  423. 


ZUSHO   GEDAI 

Yatabe  (Prof.  R.),  76. 
Y at  ate,  123. 
Yatsuhashi,  340. 
Yatsushiro  ware,  392. 
Year-names,  478-9. 
Yedo,  235  ;  83,  130,  150, 

166,  167,  235,  236,  28q, 

315,363,393,429,486, 

524,  and  see  Tokyo. 
Yellow  Peril,  9,  242. 
Yezo,   522 ;   22,   27,   28, 

99,    100,  209-11,   212, 

2S0,  350,  389. 

"  Yi  King"  104,  122. 
Yokohama,  71,  489;   28, 

56,  71,  236,  301,  309, 

349,35o,35i,357,  369, 
389, 403, 404,  460,  487, 

491. 
Yokohama  dialect,  369. 
Yokoi,  (T.),  88. 
Yokosuka,  16,  184,  350. 
Yomi-uri,  351. 
Yoritomo,  232  ;  149,  233, 

427. 
"  \'orozu    Chohd"     352, 

413- 
Yose,  439, 440. 
Yoshida  Shoin,  293. 
Yoshimasa,  457,  462. 
Yoshino,  90. 
Yoshitsune,  522. 
Yoshiwara,  524. 
"  Young  Japan,"  69,  264. 
Young   Men's    Christian 

Association,  331,  434. 
Yuino,  310. 
"  Yuki  no  Akebono"  191, 

289. 
Yulo,  413. 

Yuryaku  (Emperor),  31. 
Yushu-kwan,  448 ;  82. 


Zensect,  78,  79,456,457. 
Zipangu,  249- 
Zodiac,  476 ;  125. 
Zoology,    526;     75,    85, 

400,429,431,443-4. 
"  Zusho  Gedai"  62. 


BY  THE  SAME  AUTHOR. 


A  Handbook  of  Colloquial  Japanese,  i  Vol.,  crown  8vo.,  3rd 
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A  Practical  Introduction  to  the  Study  of  Japanese  Writing  (Moji 
no  Shinibe),  1  vol.,  410,  2nd  edit,  in  the  press. 

Essay  in  Aid  of  a  Grammar  a?id  Dictionary  of  the  Luchuan 
Language.  (Published  as  Supplement  to  Vol.  XXIII  of  the 
"Transactions  of  the  Asiatic  Society  of  Japan.") 

The  Language,  Mythology,  and  Geographical  ISomenclature  of 
Japan,  Viewed  in  the  Light  of  Aino  Studies,  1  Vol.  (Published  as 
a*  "Memoir  of  the  Literature  College  of  the  Imperial  University 
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A  Translation  of  the  "  Kojiki"  or  "Records  of  Ancient  Matters'* 
with  Lniroduction  and  Commentary,  1  Vol.  (Published  as  Supple- 
ment to  Vol.  X  of  the  "  Transactions  of  the  Asiatic  Society  of 
Japan. " 

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